A US federal appeals court has put a temporary halt to Minnesota's ban on AI-generated fake nude images following a lawsuit by Elon Musk's xAI, which claims the law is unconstitutional and infringes on free speech. The appeals court granted xAI's request for an injunction, overturning a previous lower court's decision that had rejected a similar bid. Minnesota's law, which took effect on August 1, prohibits the creation of realistic images depicting intimate body parts without consent. xAI argues the law is overly broad and lacks necessary exceptions for artistic or journalistic purposes, while the state insists it is vital to prevent the creation of harmful content like child sexual abuse material generated by AI tools.

A US federal appeals court has put a temporary halt to Minnesota's ban on AI-generated fake nude images following a lawsuit by Elon Musk's xAI, which claims the law is unconstitutional and infringes on free speech. The appeals court granted xAI's request for an injunction, overturning a previous lower court's decision that had rejected a similar bid. Minnesota's law, which took effect on August 1, prohibits the creation of realistic images depicting intimate body parts without consent. xAI argues the law is overly broad and lacks necessary exceptions for artistic or journalistic purposes, while the state insists it is vital to prevent the creation of harmful content like child sexual abuse material generated by AI tools.

A US federal appeals court has put a temporary halt to Minnesota's ban on AI-generated fake nude images following a lawsuit by Elon Musk's xAI, which claims the law is unconstitutional and infringes on free speech. The appeals court granted xAI's request for an injunction, overturning a previous lower court's decision that had rejected a similar bid. Minnesota's law, which took effect on August 1, prohibits the creation of realistic images depicting intimate body parts without consent. xAI argues the law is overly broad and lacks necessary exceptions for artistic or journalistic purposes, while the state insists it is vital to prevent the creation of harmful content like child sexual abuse material generated by AI tools.

A US federal appeals court has halted US state Minnesota’s ban on AI-generated fake nude images after Elon Musk’s xAI on Friday pursued a lawsuit alleging that the law is unconstitutional.

Last month, a lower court judge rejected Musk’s bid for an order stopping the law. District Judge Donovan Franck ruled that xAI did not show that it would suffer irreparable harm while challenging the law and that the company waited too long to seek emergency relief.

The St. Louis-based 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals has now halted the law and granted a request for an injunction by xAI.

Minnesota’s anti-nudification law took effect on August 1 and prohibits website operators, software developers and others from allowing users to create realistic images depicting intimate body parts that are not shown in ​an original photo of an identifiable individual, Reuters reported.

XAI alleged that the measure restricts free speech. SpaceXAI said that the law borrowed from a criminal sexual-contact statute to define intimate parts, which include the inner thigh, buttocks and breast, male or female, as well as the primary genital area and groin.

It argued that the law had no consent element and no scienter requirement, and no exception for artistic, political or journalistic images.

XAI also said that the state imposed a fine upto $500,000 on a provider that allows such an image and faces a civil action for treble and punitive damages, and its motion describes the exposure as “$500,000 per image.”

Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison's office said that it will defend the state's law as xAI’s appeal moves forward.

"Minnesota's nudification ban outlaws AI technology products from generating sexual images that harm and harass ‌people in the vilest way possible," Ellison spokesperson John Stiles said.

Minnesota urged the appeals court not to block the law. The state said that it adopted the measure to combat the spread of what it called a "staggering amount of child sexual abuse material that AI products like ​Grok Imagine generate."

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