Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, which makes the Grok chatbot, is being sued by teenagers who say the company’s AI models were used to create nonconsensual nudes of them.
Nicolas Tucat/AFP via Getty Images
hide caption
toggle caption
Nicolas Tucat/AFP via Getty Images
Three teenagers from Tennessee have launched a class action lawsuit against Elon Musk’s AI firm, xAI, claiming that its language model was used in an app that created nonconsensual nude and sexually explicit images of them when they were minors.
The lawsuit describes the AI-generated images as resembling a “rag doll brought to life through dark arts,” capable of being altered into any form, regardless of legality or decency. The complaint notes that for the affected children, their identifying features are now permanently linked to videos of their own abuse.
Even though the perpetrator did not use xAI’s Grok chatbot or the social media platform X, also owned by xAI, the lawsuit alleges that an unnamed app utilizing xAI’s algorithm was involved, as per law enforcement sources.
The plaintiffs argue that xAI intentionally licensed its technology to various app developers, often outside the United States, potentially to avoid liability for their hazardous tool.
This lawsuit marks the first instance where xAI faces legal action from minors depicted in allegedly AI-generated child sexual abuse material. Over the past year, xAI’s tools have reportedly contributed to the creation of millions of sexualized images. Ashley St. Clair, an influencer who shares a child with Musk, previously sued the company over AI-generated images on X portraying her nude as a teen.
The legal complaint highlights that the perpetrator, who had a close relationship with one of the plaintiffs, used photos sent by the plaintiff and others obtained from yearbooks and social media to create the images. One video allegedly showed a plaintiff “undressing until she was entirely nude.” The lifelike nature of these videos and their lack of AI-generated labeling troubled the plaintiffs.
The complaint further alleges that the perpetrator also created explicit content involving 18 other individuals and exchanged this material online for images of others. He has since been arrested.
Attorney Vanessa Baehr-Jones, representing the teenagers identified as Jane Does 1, 2, and 3, emphasized their goal to alter how AI companies handle sexually explicit content. She stated, “We want to make it one [a business decision] that does not make any business sense anymore.”
The plaintiffs seek compensation for emotional distress and other damages caused by the images.
While apps with “nudifying” functions have long existed online, major companies like Google, OpenAI, and xAI updated their image generation tools last year to create images of people in bikinis. However, Google and OpenAI’s images include digital watermarks indicating their AI origin, a measure xAI has yet to adopt.
xAI did not respond to requests for comment.
