A federal judge denied a request from Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company xAI to block a Minnesota law that is the first in the nation to ban nudification technology.
U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank ruled that there was little risk of immediate harm from the law going into effect as planned on August 1, despite a lawsuit filed by xAI claiming that the ban on artificial nudification technology violates a person’s First Amendment right of free speech.
“xAI filed the motion on July 29, 2026, nearly three months after the law was signed, and only three days before the law is set to take effect. Such a delay in bringing the action and the motion suggests that harm is not immediate,” Judge Frank wrote in his two-page decision denying xAI’s request to stop the ban from going into effect.
Ban Could Still Be Lifted
However, the ban on AI nudification technology isn’t set in stone yet. Judge Frank wrote that he’d hold a hearing on August 19 on whether or not to grant a preliminary injunction on the matter.
The law officially went into effect over the weekend, and it prohibits a person who owns or controls a website, application or software to allow their users to “nudify” images of others, and it prohibits anyone from advertising nudification capabilities. Musk feels like the law is overarching, and the lawsuit states that it “is overinclusive and there are far less restrictive alternatives that function to achieve the same ends.”
As it stands, Minnesota’s current nudification law defines a “nudified” image as a video or image that has been “altered or generated to depict an intimate part not depicted in an original unaltered image or video of an identifiable individual.” Moreover, the law only applies when “the altered or generated image or video is so realistic that a reasonable person would believe that the intimate part belongs to the identifiable individual.” Seems to make perfect sense to us, but the matter heads to court again later this month.
As it stands, the penalties for violating the law are quite stiff. Companies could face a civil penalty of up to $500,000 “for each unlawful access, download or use,” in additional to civil penalties for things like:
- Mental anguish
- Punitive damages
- Attorney’s fees
- “Other relief the court deems just an equitable”
Companies would only face civil penalties, as Minnesota’s law does not include criminal penalties for these technological violations.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison argued that the ban should remain in effect, suggesting that xAI waited until the last minute to file for the delay.
“Voluntary delay should not create a manufactured emergency for the Attorney General or the Court.”
The American Civil Liberties Union of Minnesota, who originally supported the passage of the law in February has since change their stance.
“While we believe that creating the technology to alter or ‘nudify’ photos of identifiable people is protected by the First Amendment, we also recognize that the non-consensual creation and dissemination of such material can inflict damage on people appearing in those images,” the ACLU of Minnesota said in a statement Friday. “In engaging with lawmakers on this issue, we hoped to strike an appropriate balance between First Amendment rights and the ability of people harmed to seek remedial measures, not unlike the remedies available to people harmed by defamation. The final version of the bill does not strike that balance.”
We’ll keep tabs on this lawsuit as it plays out, but for now, it appears that companies will face penalties should Minnesota users be able to generate nudified images using AI software or programs. In the meantime, if you need help with a criminal matter in Minnesota, connect with Avery and the team at Appelman Law Firm today at (952) 224-2277.
