{"id":595452,"date":"2026-04-10T19:54:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-10T19:54:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/595452\/"},"modified":"2026-04-10T19:54:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-10T19:54:10","slug":"wit-studio-apologizes-after-being-caught-using-generative-ai-background-art-again","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/ca\/595452\/","title":{"rendered":"Wit Studio Apologizes After Being Caught Using Generative AI Background Art Again"},"content":{"rendered":"

Wit Studio is a household name among anime fans and for good reason. It gave them the first three seasons of Attack on Titan<\/a>, co-created Spy x Family, sleeper hits like Ranking of Kings<\/a>, and it\u2019s poised to helm the remake of One Piece<\/a>. Which is why it\u2019s pretty disappointing to see the anime production studio apologize for using AI to create the background art for one of its newest shows after fans roasted the studio online for it.<\/p>\n

As reported by Kotaku<\/a>, the show in question is the fourth season of Ascendance of a Bookworm: Adopted Daughter of an Archduke, a fantasy isekai anime on Crunchyroll. Fans began to notice the usual stink of AI-smeared background art in its opening sequence and began sharing screenshots on X\/Twitter<\/a>, which spread like wildfire, voicing their sharp disappointment that Wit Studio, of all people, would lazily implement AI into the anime.<\/p>\n

AI generated backgrounds in the opening of the new Ascendance of a Bookworm season. Very unfortunate. https:\/\/t.co\/rbjknegFhr<\/a> pic.twitter.com\/V9CD6KIiMM<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 ukloim (@ukloim) April 4, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

Eventually, enough justifiable rabble-rousing from anime fans led Wit Studio to release a statement<\/a> on April 10th, six days after the show\u2019s premiere. In it, Wit Studio wrote that it had conducted an internal investigation into the anime\u2019s production process following \u201cfeedback\u201d it received online, and confirmed that generative AI was used in cuts in its opening sequence in its first episode. In tandem with its statement, the studio promised to redraw the background in its opening sequence for its second episode and to replace the opening sequence in its first episode. Wit Studio also aired out its stance on AI, writing the following:<\/p>\n

While we at our company are always interested in and closely monitor new technologies related to video production, we have, in principle (*), not permitted the use of generative AI in the video production of our works, including this one. Despite this, the current situation has occurred solely due to shortcomings in our production management and inspection systems, and we take full responsibility for this series of events. As the production company of this work, we sincerely apologize to our fans, the original author, and all other related parties.<\/p>\n

To date, with the exception of this particular cut, no use of AI-generated images has been confirmed in this work. Furthermore, we would like to add that NAM HAI ART, the art director and background production company for this work, has no involvement whatsoever in the above-mentioned matters.<\/p>\n

Taking this incident as an opportunity, we will strive to prevent recurrence by revising our production process guidelines and management system. Thank you for your understanding.<\/p>\n

TV\u30a2\u30cb\u30e1\u300e\u672c\u597d\u304d\u306e\u4e0b\u524b\u4e0a \u9818\u4e3b\u306e\u990a\u5973\u300f\u30aa\u30fc\u30d7\u30cb\u30f3\u30b0\u6620\u50cf\u306b\u95a2\u3059\u308b\u3054\u5831\u544ahttps:\/\/t.co\/0bPSKrMuRm<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 WIT_STUDIO (@WIT_STUDIO) April 10, 2026<\/a><\/p>\n

As noted up top, this isn\u2019t the first time Wit Studio has been caught using AI on an anime. In fact, the asterisk in Wit Studio\u2019s post was, as it puts it, \u201can exception,\u201d for \u201cthe experimental work Dog and Boy, which was created for the purpose of technical verification. \u201d A cop-out, if any, given the reporting Kotaku did on the incident, many anime fans in a tizzy over Ascendance of a Bookworm might\u2019ve forgotten that this marks the second time the studio got caught using AI.<\/p>\n

Back in the somewhat less stupid times of 2023, the studio was in the hot seat after fans noticed its Netflix anime series\u00a0Dog and Boy very explicitly credited AI in its production credits. At the time<\/a>, the show\u2019s production credits specifically listed AI as a co-creator of its background art and music. What\u2019s worse, the show didn\u2019t even go the extra length to credit the human artist who had to babysit the AI in its credits, simply labeling the background designer\u2019s credits as \u201cAI (+ Human).\u201d<\/p>\n

Netflix \u30a2\u30cb\u30e1\u30fb\u30af\u30ea\u30a8\u30a4\u30bf\u30fc\u30ba\u30fb\u30d9\u30fc\u30b9\u00d7\u6280\u8853\u958b\u767a\u306erinna\u682a\u5f0f\u4f1a\u793e\u00d7WIT STUDIO\u306b\u3088\u308b\u5171\u540c\u30d7\u30ed\u30b8\u30a7\u30af\u30c8\u30a2\u30cb\u30e1\u300e\u72ac\u3068\u5c11\u5e74\u300f\u306e\u30b7\u30e7\u30fc\u30c8\u30e0\u30fc\u30d3\u30fc\u3002<\/p>\n

\u4eba\u624b\u4e0d\u8db3\u306e\u30a2\u30cb\u30e1\u696d\u754c\u3092\u88dc\u52a9\u3059\u308b\u5b9f\u9a13\u7684\u306a\u53d6\u308a\u7d44\u307f\u3068\u3057\u3066\u30013\u5206\u9593\u306e\u6620\u50cf\u5168\u30ab\u30c3\u30c8\u306e\u80cc\u666f\u753b\u306b\u753b\u50cf\u751f\u6210\u6280\u8853\u3092\u6d3b\u7528\uff01 pic.twitter.com\/GYuWONSqlJ<\/a><\/p>\n

\u2014 Netflix Japan | \u30cd\u30c3\u30c8\u30d5\u30ea\u30c3\u30af\u30b9 (@NetflixJP) January 31, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n

To further step on rakes in an already bad situation, Netflix Japan issued a tweet<\/a> about the whole snafu, justifying its AI usage, writing, \u201cAs an experimental initiative to support the labor-short anime industry, image generation technology is utilized for the background artwork of all cuts in a 3-minute video.\u201d This statement (very shittily) ties into the reality that the anime industry doesn\u2019t pay freelancers a living wage to create the work that winds up making beaucoup bucks.<\/p>\n

Whether the AI usage looks good or bad is besides the point when we\u2019re talking about one of the biggest and most adored anime studios around not doing the bare minimum to hire human artists to animate their shows. Which only makes the sting of the company\u2019s second public infraction with AI all the more shitty when you consider the lengths the company went to prevent issues like crunch.<\/p>\n

In an interview with Kotaku at Anime Expo<\/a> later that year, Wit Studio president, CEO, and producer George Wada revealed that one of the benefits of working with fellow studio CloverWorks on Spy x Family<\/a>\u2014an at-the-time unheard-of practice for an ongoing anime\u2014is that it helped the studios maintain a healthy worker environment that didn\u2019t lean on overworking animators to make a show (cough cough, Mappa<\/a>). In that very same interview, Wada explained why Wit Studio was no longer working on shows like Attack on Titan (which infamously took four years to release its second season<\/a>) and Vinland Saga, which were taken over by Mappa in their fourth and second seasons, respectively.<\/p>\n

\u201cThere was a schedule set by like the manga side saying, \u2018Can you air it on this and this date\u2019 and it just did not mesh with the studio. We can\u2019t really create something with that schedule because the fans want to get the show sooner than later,\u201d Wada told Kotaku, adding that Wit hires creators as employees so it can give them a salary to ensure they\u2019re \u201cproperly paid. A statement that reads glaringly hollow in hindsight.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no putting the proverbial toothpaste back in the tube with generative AI, but that doesn\u2019t make its pervasiveness in the arts any less disappointing to see. Plainly speaking, it\u2019s a slap in the face to fans\u00a0<\/a>and to professional animators<\/a>. Time and time again, it\u2019s ruined any sense of excitement for otherwise promising shows when a whiff of it is sheepishly admitted to and mucks up any admiration one might\u2019ve had<\/a> with actors caught using it. And for good reason. Why should anyone care about something nobody bothered to make in the first place?<\/p>\n

Want more io9 news? Check out when to expect the latest Marvel<\/a>, Star Wars<\/a>, and Star Trek<\/a> releases, what\u2019s next for the DC Universe on film and TV<\/a>, and everything you need to know about the future of Doctor Who<\/a>.<\/p>\n