Ko-fi's stance on AI
At Ko-fi, we're here to support creators of all kinds - artists, writers, musicians, streamers, and more. Our goal is to provide tools that help you share your work and earn a living on your terms.
AI has become an increasingly significant topic in the creative world, bringing up questions about ethics, copyright, and fair use. We want to be transparent about where we stand, and the steps we've taken to protect creators on Ko-fi.
Protecting creators' work
The community is at the heart of everything we do, and we believe creators deserve to have their work respected and protected. That's why we do not support AI models being trained on creators' work.
Ko-fi has always strictly prohibited the scraping of any content. This means AI bots and other automated tools are not allowed to collect content from our service. We've gone even further by using software to block major AI training bots, including OpenAI, Google, and Amazon, so that your content isn't being scraped without your consent.
We can only control what happens on Ko-fi, so while we're not able to protect content you share elsewhere, we're committed to making sure your work is protected on our service.
Misrepresentation
Creators on Ko-fi are responsible for being honest about their work and how it was made. Presenting AI-generated content as your own human-made work to potential buyers goes against Ko-fi's Terms and Conditions, which prohibit content that is misleading or dishonest. For example, marketing AI-generated reference images for commissions as hand-drawn, or selling AI-written content as your own writing.
If you believe a creator is misrepresenting their work in this way, you can report it for review here.
Why don't you ban AI content on Ko-fi?
Ko-fi exists to help creators earn a living doing what they love, and the ways people create are more varied than ever. Rather than deciding which tools are acceptable, we focus on making sure all content on Ko-fi meets copyright law and our content guidelines. These guidelines reflect requirements and standards set by our payment providers, and apply equally to everyone.
Creators use a wide range of tools across their work, from assisted features within creative software, writing and music production, to accessibility tools like auto-captioning and image descriptions. We want to support that range of creativity without making judgement about individual creative choices.
Is AI content allowed in Ko-fi's Discord and giveaways?
The Ko-fi Discord server is run by community volunteers and operates separately from the main service. Because AI discussions can become heated, the community has chosen not to allow AI content in the server to keep the space welcoming and focused on creator connections.
AI-generated work is not eligible for giveaways, challenges, or contests on Ko-fi, including those on our socials and in our Discord server.
We're here to support you in doing what you love, and we're committed to maintaining the integrity of your creative work. We'll continue to listen to your feedback and adapt as the conversation around AI evolves. If you'd like to share your thoughts on AI and Ko-fi, you can do that here.