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Minnesota bans the AI tools that make fake nudes

Minnesota bans the AI tools that make fake nudes

Rule Changes

The first U.S. law targeting nudification technology at the source takes effect as Elon Musk's xAI fights it in court

Yesterday: The ban takes effect

Overview

In 2024, a pregnant Minnesota woman named Molly Kelley learned that a family friend had turned her Facebook photos into pornography. He did the same to about 80 other women.

Her case produced the first U.S. law that bans the AI tools themselves, not just the sharing of fake images. It took effect August 1, 2026, and lets victims sue for up to $500,000 per violation. Elon Musk's AI company, xAI, sued to block it days before the start date and lost the first round.

Why it matters

If Minnesota's law holds up in court, states can outlaw the AI tools that make fake nudes, not just punish the people who share them.

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Key Indicators

$500K
Civil penalty per violation
Maximum damages a victim can seek for each unlawful access, download, or use.
1st
State to ban the technology itself
Minnesota is the first state to bar services from offering nudification tools, not just from spreading images.
~80
Women targeted in the founding case
Molly Kelley and roughly 80 other women had images made by one man using a nudification site.
~7,000
Images from one childhood photo
A plaintiff added to the litigation says a relative used Grok to generate thousands of explicit images from a single photo.

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People Involved

Organizations Involved

Timeline

July 2024 August 2026

6 events Latest: Yesterday
Tap a bar to jump to that date
  1. The ban takes effect

    Latest Rule Change

    Minnesota's nudification ban goes live. Victims can now sue anyone who creates or distributes such images for up to $500,000 per violation.

  2. Governor signs the ban into law

    Legislation

    Governor Tim Walz signs HF 1606, making Minnesota the first state to ban services from offering nudification tools.

  3. Bill clears both chambers

    Legislation

    The measure passes with near-unanimous, bipartisan votes: 132-1 in the House and 65-0 in the Senate.

  4. A victim discovers the images

    Origin

    In 2024, Molly Kelley learns a family friend used a nudification website to make explicit fakes of her and about 80 other women.

Historical Context

3 moments from history that rhyme with this story — and how they unfolded.

June 1997

Reno v. ACLU (1997)

Congress passed the Communications Decency Act in 1996 to criminalize sending indecent material to minors online. The Supreme Court struck down the core provisions in a unanimous ruling, finding them too broad and vague.

Then

The government lost its main tool for policing online indecency.

Now

Courts set a high bar for content-based limits on internet speech, a standard xAI now invokes.

Why this matters now

xAI's First Amendment claim leans on this line of cases. Minnesota argues its law targets a tool and conduct, not protected expression.

April 2018

FOSTA-SESTA (2018)

Congress amended Section 230 to strip legal immunity from websites that knowingly facilitate sex trafficking. Platforms faced new liability for user activity.

Then

Sites like Craigslist shut down personal ads to avoid exposure.

Now

Critics said the lack of clear safe harbors chilled lawful speech and pushed platforms to over-remove content.

Why this matters now

xAI makes the same complaint: no safe harbor means compliant operators face the same $500,000 exposure as bad actors.

May 2025

TAKE IT DOWN Act (2025)

President Trump signed a federal law criminalizing the non-consensual publication of intimate images, including deepfakes. It requires covered platforms to remove flagged images within 48 hours.

Then

Victims gained a federal takedown right, enforced by the Federal Trade Commission.

Now

The law targets distribution after the fact, leaving the creation tools untouched.

Why this matters now

Minnesota attacks the other end of the pipeline. The federal law removes images; Minnesota tries to stop them from being made.

Sources

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