Who takes the images
Who buys product images for AI, from their own pages
Updated
Most organisations that license images for AI do it from a library they already hold. A smaller group runs a door an outside owner can walk through, and a few name product or e-commerce imagery outright.
Doors open to an outside owner
Shutterstock's Data Partner Network invites owners to "license your content for AI training" and asks for a description of the library before following up.
Source: Shutterstock, Data Partner Network
Defined.ai's partnership page addresses anyone who owns or processes data and lists image among the kinds its partners supply; Protege and Troveo each address data holders with a licensing route of their own.
Source: Defined.ai partnership programmes page
Buyers that name product imagery
Shutterstock's image-generation licensing page says its data powers "product imagery, personalization, and generative experiences across e-commerce, retail, and design applications." Wirestock's creator guide says clear, well-lit shots of products from different angles are essential for e-commerce and product design AI.
Source: Shutterstock, image generation data licensing
Libraries that pay their own contributors
Shutterstock says contributors earn a 20% average royalty on data licence revenue, Alamy says it will split such revenue with contributors whose images are included, and Adobe pays a discretionary bonus to Adobe Stock contributors whose content was considered for Firefly training.
Source: Shutterstock contributor help: data licensing and the Contributor Fund
AI image companies trained only on licensed data
Bria says all its models are trained exclusively on licensed data from Getty Images, Alamy and Envato, and its Product Shots suite is built for e-commerce product imagery. Photoroom says it draws on proprietary data from image providers and professional photographers under agreed terms. The full board quotes every page.
Source: Who takes product images for AI