Elon Musk's xAI challenges Minnesota AI 'nudify' law

Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company, now operating under the name SpaceXAI, has sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison over a new state law that targets non-consensual sexually explicit AI-generated images. The complaint, filed in federal court, argues the law violates the First Amendment by imposing a broad ban on the tools of visual expression, CNBC reported.

The legislation, set to take effect Saturday, applies to websites and apps that let users create deepfake explicit images. It sets a fine of $500,000 for every image generated through such a platform. The Minnesota state Senate passed the bill in April after Senator Erin Maye Quade learned that a man had used social media photos of more than 80 women he knew to create sexualized content without their permission.

xAI's attorneys wrote that the statute “imposes an overbroad, content-based ban on free speech and the tools of visual expression in a clumsy attempt to prohibit ‘nudification.’” The company warned that if users generated 100,000 prohibited images, a platform could face fines totaling $50 billion. The complaint calls the penalties “eye-popping” and says the law punishes speech before it happens.

Maye Quade told CNBC the law is comparable to statutes banning voyeuristic acts like secretly taking explicit photographs through windows. She argued the legislation addresses a modern technological equivalent of an old problem.

This is not xAI's first legal fight over AI-generated content. In a separate case, the company challenged a California law aimed at curbing deepfakes in election campaigns. A federal judge partially sided with xAI, striking down provisions that restricted the use of AI-generated deepfakes during elections.