Starship Entertainment has issued a formal apology to Ahn Yujin of IVE and her fans following a controversy involving an AI-generated photo shared on the company’s Chinese social media account. On January 15, Starship acknowledged the incident and expressed regret over the actions of one of its employees who was responsible for sharing the manipulated image on Weibo, the Chinese social media platform. The image was widely criticized by fans, leading to backlash.

In the statement, Starship explained, "The incident occurred due to a serious mistake made by an employee responsible for managing our Chinese social media." The company expressed deep apologies, saying, "We sincerely apologize to Ahn Yujin and her fans for the emotional harm caused." The agency also confirmed that the issue stemmed from their management oversight and that the employee responsible has been disciplined. "We have taken the highest level of disciplinary action and have removed the employee from related duties," Starship stated.

Additionally, Starship addressed the issue of online harassment directed at Ahn Yujin, promising to take strong legal action. The agency reassured fans, stating, "We are actively pursuing legal action against those spreading false information and engaging in defamatory behavior. We will do our best to prevent further harm."

Starship concluded their statement by offering further apologies to fans, acknowledging the disappointment and concern caused by the incident. "We deeply apologize once again for the distress this has caused. We take the lessons from this experience very seriously and will do everything we can to rebuild trust with our fans."

The controversy erupted when Starship’s employee retweeted an AI-generated image of Ahn Yujin on Weibo on January 9. According to Ahn Yujin's fanbase, the image was created by an individual suspected of being a malicious troll. Fans criticized the sharing of the image, calling it a form of secondary harm. Starship quickly deleted the post after the controversy erupted and apologized, explaining that the incident occurred during the process of reporting harmful content.

Meanwhile, IVE is preparing for their comeback with "IVE Empathy", scheduled for February 3.

Sayart / Sharon Jung, guhuijeong784@gmail.com