X53 on AI: Here's Where We Stand

We hear the concerns around AI in creative work, and we respect the conversation.

Here's where we stand.

X53 Studios was built by independent creators; writers, pencilers, inkers, colorists, letterers, and editors. Their work is the heart of what we do. That is not changing. Our comics remain our core business, and the people who make them remain valued, credited, and paid.

AI video is a different story. AI video gives us something an indie publisher like X53 could never realistically afford before: the ability to see our characters and stories move. A short cinematic-style promo made the traditional way would require a production budget in the millions, which unfortunately is not a reality for an independent publisher. 

Every promotional video we produce starts with a full script; drawn from past and future storylines, built around moments we believe best represent who these characters are. The look of those characters, their environments, their world, that's something we have complete control over. These aren't random AI generations. They are deliberate creative decisions made by the same team that makes the books. When you see Alice in the video below.  This is what I pictured Alice to be when I created her.

These tools change that equation.

We are not using AI to replace comic artists. We are using it to build our audience for our five core books and a bigger audience means better page rates for the artists who make them. The artists working on X53 titles have been with us since we launched. They are happy with the work. Our goal is to grow this so they benefit more from it.

— Asif  Iqbal /  X53 Studios