I don't know if the OP still reads this but, here goes:
To the OP, your logic with AI is a little off--and I don't mean that in a bad way. You should definitely look into "linear algebra" and find out exactly what AI is doing. It will blow your mind.
I say this because I finally got tired of the arguing, I figured I would find out the truth for myself. By my own hands and eyes, I wanted to KNOW. So I spent 3 full days pouring over the mathematics. It all looked so simple, I thought it couldn't be true. So I worked out the high-dimensional mathematics for single 6x6 encoder neuron pass--by hand. Sure enough... You could literally do anything AI does by writing numbers on a piece of paper. The computer code is just automating the math problems at incredible speeds.
I can now literally, not maybe, I can literally build my own ChatGPT from a blank sheet of paper. I don't have to ask anyone anymore... I know.
IS AI ART STEALING?
Yes and no... but mostly? NO.
WHEN IS IT STEALING?
There is literally only 2 instances in which generating something with AI can be reasonably called "stealing" and that is:
1.) When you use a LORA or an Embedding to mimic a particular style.
2.) If you use or mention anyone else's work in the initial prompt. (Like using img2video to animate someone else's artwork)
There is no "output", only the input transformed. These words, all this terminology, it's just lies. Or wishful thinking or marketing hype or something. There is no "training", there is no "knowledge base", there is no "pattern recognition".
"AI" isn't even AI. What we do after the process, that is the "intelligence" aspect. In truth, an AI model does not have to "speak" in words like a chat bot. It does not have to "speak" in images or video. It can utilize anything. ANYTHING.
Because a feed-forward neural network is way cooler than anyone can possibly imagine if they don't already know.
It is a High-Dimensional Probability Drive. And whatever mathematical expression that navigates that hyperspace becomes forever changed.
It's not "intelligence". It's a navigation system. The only reason it even "cares" to do anything other than that is because after the navigation, we use a softMax function to reduce the final vector (coordinates) into small enough numbers that they can fit into probability calculations. Then, each final neuron is compared against the token dictionary like a massive game of Battleship.
E-3... Hit!
Whichever neuron produces a probability closest to the intended token, that's the one that is chosen. An AI's "temperature" is literally like saying how "hot or cold" it is allowed to be from the desired result.
So until someone steps up with the mathematics, ignore them. Because they do not know. It will help your heart and mind to know for yourself.