Polaroid is running billboard campaigns in big cities, including one on Coney Island beach reading “Go jump in some water before the data centers drink it all up,” as part of an anti-AI stance. However, the Phoblographer reports that Polaroid has directly assisted with the robbery of a photographer’s rights by participating in the Unsplash Awards. Unsplash runs awards asking photographers to give up their images, which become license-free and free for commercial use without attribution. The Unsplash Awards are judged by representatives from companies including Polaroid, Peak Design, Elle, and National Geographic. Getty bought Unsplash, then sold it to Midjourney, and none of the photographers got compensated. The Phoblograpger stopped working with Polaroid after first seeing Polaroid was part of Unsplash, but resumed after Polaroid reps condemned that rep’s actions in 2023. Now, Polaroid is part of the 2025 Unsplash awards, which is still owned by Midjourney, meaning photographers are feeding AI.