# Commercial use of AI images: what each model’s terms allow

Prompt and Render desk. A ZeroClick publication (https://promptandrender.com/about/). Published 2026-10-09.
Format: Explainer. Topic: Rights and rules (https://promptandrender.com/topics/rights-and-rules/).
Canonical: https://promptandrender.com/articles/commercial-use-ai-images-agent-terms/

The licence attached to your rendering service and plan determines who may use its images and under what conditions. Start there before handing an agent's image to a client: an ownership clause can coexist with restrictions on generation, sharing or reuse. Whether copyright protects that image is a separate question the vendor's contract cannot settle.

## Which terms apply to the image your agent made?

Use the agreement for the service that generated it, not just the model name. The comparison below covers selected routes: Adobe Firefly under standard Adobe terms, Google's Gemini API and AI Studio, Midjourney, and the OpenAI API. It does not extend their answers to consumer Gemini or ChatGPT, Vertex AI, downloadable model weights, or a reseller's contract.

As of October 8, 2026, these documents provide the following commercial-use basis and conditions. Rows are alphabetical, not ranked; the table gives document versions, with provisions identified in the notes.

| Vendor and service | Basis for commercial use | Plan tier, including free and paid | Ownership or licence language | Named exceptions | Terms version |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| [Adobe Firefly](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf) | [Output is your Content, subject to the Terms](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf); [NFR-produced materials cannot be used commercially](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html) | [Ordinary free access is governed by the Terms; designated NFR versions have the commercial restriction](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html) | [You retain Content ownership as against Adobe](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html) | [Preserve Content Credentials; no AI training with output; gallery licence; non-Adobe models treated separately](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf) | [General Terms: October 3, 2025](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html); [Generative AI terms: April 23, 2026](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf) |
| [Google Gemini API / AI Studio](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) | [Professional/business use contemplated, subject to use restrictions](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) | [Unpaid and paid services covered; different data-use rules; API clients offered in the EEA, Switzerland or UK require Paid Services](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) | [Google declines ownership claims; similar outputs may go to others](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) | [No competing-model development; restrictions on sensitive inputs to unpaid services, with regional data-use exception](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) | [March 23, 2026](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) |
| [Midjourney](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) | [Asset ownership is the basis, qualified by law and third-party rights](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) | [Company or employee of a company above USD 1 million annual revenue: Pro or Mega required for ownership; no separate free-tier clause stated](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) | [User owns Assets subject to exceptions; Midjourney retains a perpetual licence](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) | [Automated tools prohibited; another creator's upscaled image stays theirs; public content remixable](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) | [May 27, 2026](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) |
| [OpenAI API](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/) | [Customer owns Output, subject to law and use obligations](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/) | [API/business agreement; ordinary consumer plans outside its scope](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/) | [OpenAI assigns whatever output rights it has, if any](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/) | [Input permissions remain the customer's responsibility; output may be similar to others'](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/); [beta services lack indemnity](https://openai.com/policies/service-terms/) | [Services Agreement: January 1, 2026](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/); [Service Terms updated September 29, 2026](https://openai.com/policies/service-terms/) |

## When does the plan change what you can ship?

The plan matters where the agreement attaches a condition to it. Adobe's ownership clause does not by itself establish commercial permission for every free or beta feature; check the applicable licence and designation.

Adobe's [General Terms separate ordinary free or trial access in section 3.7 from an NFR designation in section 3.8](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html). Section 3.8's commercial-use ban applies when Adobe designates the version NFR, a category that can include trial, evaluation or not-for-resale versions. Its separate beta provision concerns unfinished features and content analysis; do not treat every beta label as the NFR prohibition.

For the OpenAI API, inspect the [Services Agreement's output clause and applicable order form](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/), rather than choosing a consumer ChatGPT subscription on the assumption it determines API rights. The agreement expressly separates those service categories.

## Does permission to use the output permit automated generation?

Not by itself. Midjourney's [section 1 prohibits automated tools](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service) for accessing, interacting with or generating through its service. Its output-ownership clause does not undo that restriction.

Adobe's [guidelines bar unauthorized automated or scripting processes](https://www.adobe.com/legal/licenses-terms/adobe-gen-ai-user-guidelines.html). Google's [API Terms require documented access methods](https://developers.google.com/terms), a condition on how you use the API rather than a ban on programmatic generation. Those distinctions matter when choosing the agent's generation route. Our recommendation is to record both decisions before connecting a generation tool.

## What rights does the vendor retain?

Ownership and vendor reuse can coexist. Midjourney's [section 4 licence survives termination](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service), and content is public and remixable by default. That matters when the job calls for an unreleased campaign image.

Google's [Gemini terms](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms) allow product-improvement use of unpaid-service prompts and responses, including human review; paid services exclude that improvement use. Users in the EEA, Switzerland and UK receive paid-service data treatment even on unpaid services. For the API, an active billing account on the project determines Paid Service status, not whether one call happened to cost nothing.

Adobe's [gallery clause](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf) grants additional marketing and reuse rights when you submit output to an Adobe-hosted gallery. Treat sharing destinations as part of the image's release decision, rather than assuming an ownership statement makes every destination equivalent.

## Is commercial permission the same as copyright protection?

No. In its [January 29, 2025 announcement](https://www.copyright.gov/newsnet/2025/1060.html), the U.S. Copyright Office distinguishes sufficient human authorship from merely providing prompts. Its [Part 2 executive summary and conclusion](https://www.copyright.gov/ai/Copyright-and-Artificial-Intelligence-Part-2-Copyrightability-Report.pdf) say purely AI-generated material lacks protection, while human-authored elements, creative arrangements and modifications can qualify. The assessment is case-specific, and the report ties its prompting conclusion to the technology it considered.

That is the Office's position on U.S. copyrightability, not a worldwide rule or a decision about your particular image. A vendor declining ownership, assigning its existing rights or permitting use does not supply the missing human authorship. Conversely, AI assistance does not automatically disqualify a larger human-created work.

## Does paying buy protection against an infringement claim?

Only the applicable indemnity clause can answer that. Adobe's [April 23, 2026 product terms, section 8](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf) limit Firefly output indemnification to specified eligible teams or enterprise plans, features, surfaces and export events; exclusions include modified or combined output. This is not coverage for every paid Firefly user.

OpenAI's [Service Terms, sections 1–2](https://openai.com/policies/service-terms/) extend API indemnity to certain output claims but exclude, among other cases, missing input rights, ignored safety features and trademark claims arising from commercial use; beta services are excluded too. Commercial permission and a promise to defend a claim are different clauses to check.

## What should you keep beside the finished image?

Keep a short record linking the image to its service, account, plan, terms version, input permissions and human edits. This is our workflow recommendation. It gives the next person more to inspect than a file and a model name.

Before shipping, return to the vendor's current terms: scope first, then plan conditions, output rights, retained licences and exceptions. Check any separate agreement that governs your account. The permission to deliver the image is in those provisions, not in the marketing that persuaded you to generate it.

## Which dated documents support the comparison?

- **Adobe:** [General Terms](https://www.adobe.com/legal/terms.html), effective October 3, 2025, §§3–4; [Generative AI Product Terms](https://www.adobe.com/cc-shared/assets/pdf/legal/servicetou/adobe-generative-ai-product-specific-terms-en-us-20260423.pdf), effective April 23, 2026, §§1–4, 7–8; [User Guidelines](https://www.adobe.com/legal/licenses-terms/adobe-gen-ai-user-guidelines.html), updated May 15, 2026, §§1, 6.
- **Google:** [Gemini API Additional Terms](https://ai.google.dev/gemini-api/terms), effective March 23, 2026, generated-content and unpaid/paid-service sections; [API Terms](https://developers.google.com/terms), modified November 9, 2021, §§2, 5.
- **Midjourney:** [Terms of Service](https://docs.midjourney.com/hc/en-us/articles/32083055291277-Terms-of-Service), effective May 27, 2026, §§1, 4.
- **OpenAI:** [Services Agreement](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/), effective January 1, 2026, §§3–4, 16; [Service Terms](https://openai.com/policies/service-terms/), updated September 29, 2026, §§1–2.

## Frequently asked questions

### Can an agent use every commercially licensed image generator?

No. Output-use conditions and permission for automated access are separate; Midjourney expressly prohibits automated tools.

### Does a free plan always prohibit commercial use?

No universal free-versus-paid rule follows from these terms. Check the vendor's plan conditions and any trial or evaluation designation instead of using price as a proxy for permission.

### Does owning an AI image mean nobody else can receive a similar one?

No. OpenAI's [Services Agreement](https://openai.com/policies/services-agreement/) explicitly warns that outputs may not be unique.

### Can human edits to an AI image be copyrightable?

The Copyright Office's January 2025 report says creative human modifications can qualify under U.S. law. It calls for a case-specific assessment, not automatic protection for every edit.