The company's CEO, Emad Mostaque, stated that the company is still committed to releasing open models with accessible code and weights. However, there has been some confusion about what commercial use entails, especially considering that AI-generated work has so far been denied copyright protection. Stability AI is still working on simplifying its pricing structure.
Key takeaways:
- Stability AI, the creator of the Stable Diffusion model, has launched a subscription service that changes how customers can use its models for commercial purposes. The service offers three tiers, including a free one for personal and research use, a $20 per month subscription for creators, developers, and startups, and an enterprise plan.
- The company aims to balance profitability and openness with this new membership model. All three tiers offer early access to new AI models, but only the two paid tiers allow commercial use.
- There is some confusion among users about what constitutes commercial use, and whether anyone using Stable Diffusion-generated images commercially will have to pay a fee. The company is still working on simplifying its pricing structure.
- Stability AI already charges for some of its models, such as Stable Audio, and other AI companies also offer paid tiers for access to more advanced features.