X.AI argued in the lawsuit that the Minnesota law “imposes an overbroad, content-based ban on free speech and the tools of visual expression in a clumsy attempt to prohibit ‘nudification.’” The company also added that it already “strictly prohibits its users from generating nude or sexualized images of people without their consent.”
“Although Minnesota likely has a compelling interest in preventing individuals from creating nudes of other people without consent and distributing that content, the statute punishes AI platforms for assisting in the creation of a substantial amount of protected speech in relation to that limited goal,” the company argued.
The law, which goes into effect on Saturday, allows victims to sue the owners of nudification apps for damages. It would also empower the state attorney general to collect fines of $500,000 per violation.
“Using AI to generate nude images of people against their will is appalling. There are plenty of worthy debates to have about AI. This is not one of them. AI nudification robs the target of their dignity and could cause them immense harm on many levels,” Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison said in a statement in response to the lawsuit. “I’ll see X in court.”
In a separate social media post on Tuesday, Minnesota Gov. Tim Walz (D) shared his thoughts about the lawsuit: