Bergur Thormundsson
Research expert covering technology in the Nordics, AI and smart cities
Midjourney - statistics & facts
Technology has truly developed to the stage of allowing people the chance to paint their own word pictures with ease. As one of several generative AI programs that has taken the world by storm, Midjourney allows users to create unique images from simple text prompts. With the roll-out of more advanced AI applications, text-to-image generator programs such as this have drawn considerable attention, particularly their ability to create quality images en masse, earning them the ire of the digital artist community.
Stiff competition incoming
Released in July 2022, Midjourney has racked up over 500 million visits, a popularity that saw it rank as the 4th most visited generative AI program in 2023. Midjourney had been relatively unchallenged in the generative AI art market, however, with a number of competitors ramping up development in 2023, it is likely that Midjourney’s dominance will be tested. A notable example is Google’s Gemini, capable of image generation and, despite a few stumbling early steps, is regarded as one of the most capable generative AI programs on the market. OpenAI’s Dall-E is another competitor in the field, with both OpenAI’s GPT-4 and Sora programs seen as being capable of creating art that can rival the pieces from Midjourney.Discord at capacity with Midjourney
Midjourney functions by the user downloading and using Discord, a popular digital communications platform that has a growing user base exceeding 500 million globally. Through the program, users instruct bots, of which Discord has an enormous number, to create images with simple word directives. Due to the program's popularity, Midjourney is only available to premium Discord subscribers as of March 2024. Midjourney is the most used server on Discord by a considerable margin, having over seventeen million users in 2023.Upgrades in capacity and capability needed
As the competition stiffens considerably in 2024, it is vital for Midjourney to diligently improve not just the capabilities of its program, but also its capacity. The limited access to registered users only hampers general usage considerably, and since other paid programs can also generate text, it puts Midjourney at a disadvantage compared to its competitors.
