Civitai is an online platform and marketplace for

generative AI Generative artificial intelligence (Generative AI, GenAI, or GAI) is a subfield of artificial intelligence that uses generative models to produce text, images, videos, or other forms of data. These models learn the underlying patterns and str ...

content, primarily focused on AI-generated images and models.

History

Civitai was founded in 2022 by Justin Maier. By January 2023, the site reached 100,000 registered users and 3 million by November. In November 2023, Civitai secured funding from venture capital firm

Andreessen Horowitz AH Capital Management, LLC (commonly known as Andreessen Horowitz, or a16z) is an American privately held venture capital firm, founded in 2009 by Marc Andreessen and Ben Horowitz. The company is headquartered in Menlo Park, California. As of M ...

. By April 2024, Civitai had 23.2 million monthly accesses. The company is headquartered in Boise, Idaho.

Platform

Civitai allows users to share and download AI models, particularly those used for image generation. The platform supports various AI models, including

Stable Diffusion Stable Diffusion is a deep learning, text-to-image model released in 2022 based on Diffusion model, diffusion techniques. The generative artificial intelligence technology is the premier product of Stability AI and is considered to be a part of ...

and

Flux Flux describes any effect that appears to pass or travel (whether it actually moves or not) through a surface or substance. Flux is a concept in applied mathematics and vector calculus which has many applications in physics. For transport phe ...

, and provides a space for users to showcase and monetize their AI-generated content. Users have profile pages and can comment on other users' models and images. The website also features a virtual currency called ''Buzz'' that can be used to generate images on Civitai's servers. Buzz can be bought or earned by engaging with the site. The platform is

open source Open source is source code that is made freely available for possible modification and redistribution. Products include permission to use and view the source code, design documents, or content of the product. The open source model is a decentrali ...

Controversies

In 2023,

404 Media ''404 Media'' is an online publication that focuses on technology and internet reporting. It covers topics such as hacking, sex work, niche online communities, and the right-to-repair movement. It is worker-owned by its reporters. History ' ...

reported that Civitai began a "bounties" marketplace where users could commission

deepfakes ''Deepfakes'' (a portmanteau of and ) are images, videos, or audio that have been edited or generated Generative artificial intelligence, using artificial intelligence, AI-based tools or AV editing software. They may depict real or fictional p ...

, of real or fake people. Users are rewarded for completing bounties with buzz. In December 2023, AI provider OctoML announced it had ended its business relationship with Civitai after concerns were raised users were generating images that “could be categorized as

child pornography Child pornography (also abbreviated as CP, also called child porn or kiddie porn, and child sexual abuse material, known by the acronym CSAM (underscoring that children can not be deemed willing participants under law)), is Eroticism, erotic ma ...

.”

Censorship

Since July 25th 2025, the platform has shut down in the UK in response to the Online Safety Act. This is because they're a small team. and they said they don't have the legal budget or manpower to decode and implement safety features, including age verification. Anyone in the UK visiting the website right now will see a message saying the platform is no longer available in that country.

References

{{Reflist, refs= {{cite journal , last1=Gorwa , first1=Robert , last2=Veale , first2=Michael , title=Moderating model marketplaces: platform governance puzzles for AI intermediaries , journal=Law, Innovation and Technology , date=2 July 2024 , volume=16 , issue=2 , pages=341–391 , doi=10.1080/17579961.2024.2388914 , url=https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/17579961.2024.2388914 , issn=1757-9961, arxiv=2311.12573 {{cite web , last1=Yamamoto , first1=Hirofumi , last2=Iwasawa , first2=Akinobu , last3=Yamada , first3=Toru , last4=Sakai , first4=Sotaro , last5=Senzaki , first5=Ryohei , last6=Nakagawa , first6=Marina , last7=Miyashita , first7=Hiroyuki , last8=Kida , first8=Kazuhiro , last9=Kobayashi , first9=Ken , title=AI anime flood - An infringement investigation of 90,000 images , url=https://asia.nikkei.com/static/vdata/infographics/ai-anime/ , website=Nikkei Asia , language=en , date=Jun 6, 2024 {{cite web , last1=Tenbarge , first1=Kat , title=Top AI companies commit to child safety principles as industry grapples with deepfake scandals , url=https://www.nbcnews.com/tech/tech-news/top-ai-companies-commit-child-safety-principles-thorn-rcna148988 , website=NBC News , language=en , date=24 April 2024 {{cite web , last1=Perez , first1=Sarah , title=Andreessen Horowitz backs Civitai, a generative AI content marketplace with millions of users , url=https://techcrunch.com/2023/11/14/andreessen-horowitz-backs-civitai-a-generative-ai-content-marketplace-with-millions-of-users/ , website=TechCrunch , date=14 November 2023 {{cite web , last1=Zeman , first1=Benjamin , title=How to build basic workflows in ComfyUI , url=https://www.xda-developers.com/comfyui-how-to-workflows/ , website=XDA , language=en , date=4 December 2024 {{cite web , last1=Maiberg , first1=Emanuel , title=Giant AI Platform Introduces 'Bounties' for Deepfakes of Real People , url=https://www.404media.co/giant-ai-platform-introduces-bounties-for-nonconsensual-images-of-real-people/ , website=404 Media , language=en , date=13 November 2023 {{cite web , last1=Macdonald , first1=Cheyenne , title=Controversial AI image platform Civitai dropped by its cloud computing provider after reports of possible CSAM , url=https://www.engadget.com/controversial-ai-image-platform-civitai-has-been-dropped-by-its-cloud-computing-provider-195530538.html , website=Engadget , date=9 December 2023 {{cite journal , last1=De Rosa Palmini , first1=Maria-Teresa , last2=Wagner , first2=Laura Juliane , title=Surface Aesthetics: The Secret Formula of Prompting , journal=Rrrreflect. Journal of Integrated Design Research , date=31 October 2024 , issue=1 , doi=10.57684/COS-1268 , url=https://cos.bibl.th-koeln.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/1268 {{cite web , title=civitai , url=https://github.com/civitai/civitai , website = GitHub , date=9 December 2024 {{cite web , last1=Goldman , first1=Sharon , title=Civitai founder champions open source, downplays AI deepfake porn , url=https://venturebeat.com/ai/civitai-founder-champions-open-source-downplays-ai-deepfake-porn/ , website=VentureBeat , date=6 December 2023 {{cite book , last1=Wei , first1=Yiluo , last2=Zhu , first2=Yiming , last3=Hui , first3=Pan , last4=Tyson , first4=Gareth , chapter=Exploring the Use of Abusive Generative AI Models on Civitai , title=Proceedings of the 32nd ACM International Conference on Multimedia , date=28 October 2024 , pages=6949–6958 , doi=10.1145/3664647.3681052 , arxiv=2407.12876 , isbn=979-8-4007-0686-8 , chapter-url=https://dl.acm.org/doi/10.1145/3664647.3681052 Artificial intelligence companies Open-source artificial intelligence Companies based in Boise, Idaho American companies established in 2022