Recently, some absurd "AI magic modification" content has been circulating on short video platforms, arousing public attention to cultural heritage, legal boundaries, and technological ethics. The 'AI magic reform' is not simply a 'one size fits all' game, and the hidden legal risks behind it present multi-level and cross disciplinary characteristics. The 'AI Magic Transformation' mainly involves two categories of works. ”Fu Jicun, director of the Institute of Intellectual Property Law at China University of Political Science and Law, pointed out that one type is to tamper with classic works (such as literary classics) that have already entered the public domain, which may infringe on the author's right to protect the integrity of the work, that is, the right to prohibit others from distorting or tampering with their work. Even if the copyright protection period of the original work expires, its original character image and spiritual core are still protected by law. "He used the image of" Guan Yu "as an example to explain that the deeds of historical figure Guan Yu belong to public material, but the author's portrayal of the classic image of" loyal and righteous Guan Yu "in" Romance of the Three Kingdoms "is a legally protected expression of originality. The "AI Magic Transformation" that places this image in an absurd plot is a distortion of the artistic image and may constitute infringement. Another type is to "modify" works that are still within the copyright protection period, such as contemporary film and television dramas, which involve more complex legal issues. Fu Jicun stated that such "magic modification" behavior may simultaneously infringe upon multiple property rights of the copyright owner, such as reproduction rights, adaptation rights, information network dissemination rights, as well as personal rights such as the right to protect the integrity of the work. Associate Professor Zhu Wei from China University of Political Science and Law believes that the act of "magic reform" breaks through legal boundaries and often goes beyond the scope of copyright, and may also invade the field of personality rights. If the content of 'magic modification' uses the portraits and voices of actors in movies and TV dramas, it is suspected of infringing on the actors' portrait and voice rights; even if the actors are deceased, their close relatives still have the right to seek legal protection. He emphasized that if the image of heroes and martyrs is maliciously tampered with, it may violate the Hero and Martyr Protection Law and harm the public interest. The procuratorial organs can file a public interest lawsuit in accordance with the law. It is worth noting that if the "magic modification" behavior involves commercial attributes, legal regulations are stricter. For the purpose of attracting traffic and monetizing, using someone else's well-known image for 'magic modification' creation may constitute unfair competition, "said Fu Jicun. Unlike traditional parody content, the content production of "AI Magic Modification" is more realistic. For example, "Lin Daiyu" has a lively expression and precise mouth matching, while "Guan Yu"'s voice tone can almost be indistinguishable from reality. The iterative upgrading of technology has made it difficult to distinguish the authenticity of some spoof content. This type of content generated by new technologies has stronger concealment, some appear to be true and authoritative, and is more misleading to minors. ”Yu Xukun, Executive Director of Beijing Youth Legal Aid and Research Center, noticed that the forms of AI generated content are diverse, and traditional keyword filtering methods are difficult to effectively identify. Moreover, the threshold for producing such content is low, and once recommended by algorithms, it is easy to form a viral spread. Some minors cannot distinguish the boundary between fiction and reality. ”Yu Xukun said that many teenagers born in the 2000s and 2010s have not read the original work of "Dream of the Red Chamber" or watched the 1987 version of the classic TV series. Their initial understanding of "Lin Daiyu" may be the "AI modified" version of "pulling down the willow tree", which may cause deep cognitive confusion. Zhu Wei agrees with this, saying, "When the Four Great Classical Novels and revolutionary history are ridiculed and deconstructed, the common cultural memory and historical facts of a nation will be invisibly eroded. This is not an exaggeration, but a serious issue related to the foundation of cultural confidence." Yu Xukun pointed out that it is even more necessary to be vigilant about the "AI cult," that is, the use of AI generated horror and violent content disguised as children's animation for dissemination. The production threshold for such content is low, the dissemination speed is fast, and it will directly damage the mental health of minors. Faced with a massive amount of AI illegal content, traditional governance frameworks are facing challenges. The "AI Science User Manual" jointly developed by the Central Committee of the Communist Youth League to safeguard the rights and interests of young people and the expert team of the Beijing Youth Legal Aid and Research Center was officially released on January 19th, aiming to guide young people to improve their AI usage skills, use AI in a scientific and orderly manner, consciously prevent AI addiction, enhance their self-learning ability, and return to real social interaction. Regulatory authorities are continuously making efforts. At the beginning of this year, the State Administration of Radio, Film and Television launched a special campaign to focus on rectifying the "AI magic modification" content based on related TV dramas such as the Four Great Classical Novels, historical themes, revolutionary themes, and heroic figures. In September 2025, the Cyberspace Administration of China and other departments jointly formulated the "Artificial Intelligence Generated Composite Content Identification Method", which requires that AI generated content must mandatory display the "digital ID card". Experts unanimously believe that platforms should no longer use "technology neutrality" and passive "notification deletion" rules as a shield. Yu Xukun emphasized that the platform must take on the main responsibility that matches its own technical capabilities, actively establish an AI content recognition mechanism, implement key supervision on high-risk accounts and content, and at the same time, smooth reporting channels and improve fast response channels. Fu Jicun proposed to play a "combination punch" in the systematic governance of the platform: the platform can actively obtain classic IP authorization, provide users with compliant secondary creative materials, guide the creative ecology towards standardization, and explore revenue sharing models; Optimize algorithm mechanisms, implement flow restrictions and weight reductions on low-quality, spoof, and tampered with historical content, and cut off the profit chain of traffic monetization; Build an AI copyright credit file for creators, take punitive measures such as account suspension and prohibition of re registration for frequent infringers, and increase the cost of illegal activities. Zhu Wei pointed out that the governance of "AI magic reform" requires "using technology to counter technology", developing more intelligent AI recognition systems, and dealing with massive content audits. For special content involving significant history, heroes, etc., necessary manual review processes must be retained to ensure the accuracy of value judgments. Secondary creation is an important form of cultural innovation and classic inheritance, and healthy creative vitality should not be stifled by the governance of 'magic reform', "Zhu Wei emphasized. In Zhu Wei's view, the current legal framework is basically complete, and there are corresponding provisions in the Law on the Protection of Heroes and Martyrs, the Civil Code, etc. The key lies in the full and effective use of law enforcement and judicial processes. He believes that the core of governing "AI magic reform" is to find a dynamic and sustainable balance between encouraging innovation and protecting classics, technological freedom and legal norms, and personal expression and public interest. Fu Jicun suggests building a collaborative governance system involving regulatory authorities, platforms, industry organizations, and users, which can draw on the collective management model of copyright and explore the establishment of formal authorization channels for classic cultural symbols; At the same time, future legislation will further refine the regulation of the application of "deep synthesis technology", set higher protection levels for content involving classic cultural symbols, historical figures, etc., and introduce stricter punitive compensation mechanisms for malicious profit-making "AI modification" behavior. Only within a strict legal framework and guided by technology for the good, can AI truly become a powerful tool for empowering cultural prosperity. ”Zhu Wei said. (New Society)