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It's not just you imagining things: this viral character is a real thing on the internet that people are shedding tears over. As SABR shatters popularity milestones in Roblox and Fortnite, the meme-focused game has faced more scrutiny. And it turns out, you can't just make a video game out of content you haven't created. At least if you are making millions off the experience.

Understanding Steal a Brainrot Explaining Its Massive Popularity?

As many who are familiar with it, Steal a Brainrot has become an online phenomenon by combining popular gen Alpha internet memes with gameplay made for the era of YouTube thumbnail reactions. In it gather creatures inspired by obscure internet jokes. Many of these characters combine everyday animals with man-made items, creating a surreal treasure trove. Imagine Skibidi Toilet by way of Pokémon. The brainrots all have value, and their value goes up the longer players hold them. As the name implies, Steal a Brainrot allows players to purloin your creatures. Although many young adults familiar with Roblox are playing SABR, part of its spectacle is its younger audience. Kids get attached to their brainrots and get upset when they lose them, despite that's the whole point. Adults participate in Steal a Brainrot specifically to tease children. This exemplary microcosm of the human behavior under modern economics is now truly among the top games on the planet.

The Rise and Fall of This Viral Character

Tung Tung Tung Sahur is among numerous collectible brainrots in Steal a Brainrot, or at least it was. Tung Tung is a wooden drum with a blank, soulless stare carrying a baseball bat, and this thing is from the Indonesian Brainrot compendium. Interestingly, many characters have a cultural component to them. Many of the well-known ones stem from the Italian brainrot collection, but various regions have their own zoology. Characters from Spain might be different from the ones in Russia, as an instance, but sometimes one emerges that breaks through to the mainstream. Those are the brainrots included in the game.

And boy they're huge. In the case of Tung Tung Tung Sahur, a quick Google search will show you videos with millions of views. A single clip alone has enormous engagement, which is enough for the platform to rank it the 67th most popular music videos globally. Here's where it gets complicated, though. Though the character was first made using AI, and most people making content featuring it use AI. Nevertheless, someone had to create the initial idea, correct? In this case, it is the brainchild of an Indonesian TikToker, responsible for dozens of meme figures. Their work has had significant influence that the Italian brainrot wiki refers to them as "an innovative creator."

Copyright Conflict and AI-Generated Content

Recently, it appears that Noxa contacted one developer of Steal a Brainrot via an representative called a third party. The agency claims that during this exchange, Sammy involved legal counsel and proactively pulled the character from the game earlier in September. The agency maintains that it did not ask Sammy to remove the character; instead, it seems that Noxa would like to work out a agreement for compensation for its continued usage.

"Steal a Brainrot is earning substantial revenue using Noxa's work, in which we invest time and resources," reads a statement. "We remained willing for discussion and Noxa would be pleased for the players to keep playing with Tung Sahur. This situation isn't fair regarding our partners (various developers) who have obtained permission properly."

The Question of Own AI-Created Work?

A major issue here is, can you actually own an AI-generated image? In many cases, the answer seems to be no. Legal ownership applies to media created via human creativity. If you're using an AI tool, there's an argument that the software, not the user, is the source of that creativity, although the user is coming up with the prompts. There are asterisks to these guidances around ownership, some of which might differ depending on the jurisdiction in question. While some of the people in this dispute are from different areas of the world, the entities at the center of the matter are U.S.-based. Do Big Studios, which owns Steal a Brainrot, is located in Florida. Roblox's headquarters is in California, while The title creator its studio is from North Carolina.

Stateside, the law is still trying to catch up with the advancements made by AI. Recently, a new report by the U.S. copyright office dictated that "the outputs of generative AI can be owned only where a human author has determined meaningful creativity." A handful of recent cases have seen efforts to claim AI work not succeed, but legal precedent is still considered evolving as a whole. A further complication in all of this is that the game has been licensed for usage on platforms beyond Roblox, such as Fortnite. The particulars of who gets to profit from a game that heavily relies on fan-made material which in turn might be AI-generated seems like a nightmare.

Community Response and What's Next?

Wherever Tung Tung Tung Sahur lands, the game players are sad about his current absence from the game. On TikTok, there are videos of upset, alarmed, and teary-eyed fans who can't believe that such a central figure to the brainrot universe is now absent. Videos honoring Tung Tung Tung are getting huge numbers, and jokes showing Tung Tung with angel wings are frequently seen in many posts about him. Meanwhile, Noxa, the source of the meme, is getting slammed by disappointed fans in the comments as well. In a video with 119 million views, a highly-liked remark states, "You did this because of your greedy ahh." Helpfully, the comment includes an image of Martin Luther King crying. Apart from valuing the character, part of the outcry seems to be rooted in the false belief that the conflict is possibly going to get the game deleted.

"A relative who’s in youth said there were kids upset about this incidentally," reads a post on social media from a creator with a large following, who will be holding a funeral for the character live on the platform soon. Though it is still not yet started, as of this writing there are a couple of hundred people waiting in the queue for the Tung Tung vigil. I'd say farewell to the character, except users can still generate images of the unique figure if they want.