AI-critical artists have frequently made the claim that ‘AI art is theft’. Goetze (2024) and Shoemaker (2024) have considered how best to interpret the claim that AI art is theft and whether such a claim can be substantiated. This article aims to reorient the discussion away from considering the ways in which AI might be a form of theft (I argue it is not) and instead towards considering what features of AI art as understood in its own right might motivate such a complaint—that is, this article aims to move away from interpreting what artists mean when they say ‘AI art is theft’ and towards considering why they might be saying it. I conclude that instead of being a form of theft, AI art involves violations of norms internal to artistic practice. Whether such norms might evolve to incorporate AI art is a contingent historical matter, not one suited to being settled by a priori reflection.