This browser does not support the Video element.
Minnesota cracks down on AI nudification
A new Minnesota law taking effect Aug. 1 makes it illegal to use artificial intelligence to create nude images of someone without their consent. Victoria Pickering from the Minnesota Coalition Against Sexual Assault joins us to explain what the law covers, why it was passed, and what Minnesotans should know.
(FOX 9) - Elon Musk’s xAI is suing Minnesota over a new law to ban the use of AI "nudificiation" tech to create potentially pornographic deepfakes of unsuspecting victims, arguing that the ban creates a "content-based ban on free speech."
Elon Musk’s xAI sues Minnesota
What we know:
Filed in U.S. District Court in Minnesota, the lawsuit argues that the new law, "imposes an overbroad, content-based ban on free speech and the tools of visual expression in a clumsy attempt to prohibit ‘nudification."
In the lawsuit, xAI argues that it already "strictly prohibits its users from generating nude or sexualized images of people without their consent," arguing that the company has previously "filed suit against users who evade its extensive technological blockers to generate such images."
Officially SpaceXAI as of Feb. 2, 2026, the company is a subsidiary of the spaceflight company SpaceX, and is said to be working in the area of artificial intelligence (AI).
A full copy of the lawsuit can be found below:
Dig deeper:
Used by taking someone’s photo or video and turning them nude, the new law passed this past legislative session prohibits someone from accessing, downloading or using a website or app to nudify an image or video, or do so on behalf of someone else – allowing for a lawsuit for damages of at least $500,000 for each unlawful access.
It also bans advertisements or promotions of products that can nudify images or videos.
The backstory:
The Minnesota House passed the bill 132-1, and the Minnesota Senate passed it 65-0, during the 2026 legislative session.
"My bill simply requires that apps, platforms, and websites have the nudification functions turned off," said Sen. Erin Maye Quade, (DFL-Apple Valley), who authored the bill alongside Democrats and Republicans during the session.
Rep. Jess Hanson (DFL-Burnsville), leader sponsor of the bill in the House, issued the following statement after the announcement of the lawsuit: "It’s absolutely disgusting that Elon Musk and his xAI are fighting a law designed to protect children from sexual exploitation. Nudification is simply an indefensible tool of AI. As the use of AI continues to grow, so does its potential harms, with nudification features being among the most urgent to address – and that’s exactly why we banned them in Minnesota."
In 2025, Congress passed the Take It Down Act, which criminalizes the non-consensual publication of intimate images – also including "deepfakes" – but it stopped short of penalizing their creation.
The Source: FOX 9 reporting from the Minnesota Legislature.