Key Takeaways
- xAI sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison on Monday to block HF 1606, a law banning AI “nudification” tools that generate nonconsensual explicit images.
- xAI says it doesn’t oppose banning nonconsensual nude deepfakes specifically, but argues the statute is written broadly enough to sweep in satirical, artistic, or consented-to content.
- The law passed Minnesota’s legislature by near-unanimous margins and takes effect August 1, 2026.
- This is xAI’s second lawsuit against Minnesota over an AI law, and comes as the company separately faces a class-action suit over alleged Grok-generated CSAM.
Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, has sued Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison to block a first-of-its-kind state law banning “nudification” technology — AI tools that generate sexually explicit images of real people without their consent. The lawsuit, filed Monday in federal court, argues the statute amounts to an unconstitutionally broad restriction on speech and creative tools.
xAI’s complaint reportedly identifies the company as now folded into SpaceX under the name “SpaceXAI.” Timespek has not independently verified this corporate restructuring against a primary filing and treats it as an unconfirmed claim from the complaint itself.
xAI contends in its complaint that Minnesota’s law reaches far beyond stopping nonconsensual deepfakes. The company says it does not object to the state outlawing the distribution of fabricated nude images made without a subject’s permission, but argues the law as written covers far more than that — potentially including harmless, satirical, or artistic content.
“There are plenty of worthy debates to have about AI policy — this isn’t one of them.”
— Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison
Ellison, whose office had not yet been formally served as of publication, said AI nudification strips victims of their dignity and can inflict lasting emotional, personal, and professional harm. The law, known as HF 1606, was signed by Gov. Tim Walz earlier this year and takes effect August 1. It passed the state legislature by overwhelming margins — 132 to 1 in the House and 65 to 0 in the Senate — and allows both individual victims and the attorney general’s office to sue platforms or individuals behind nonconsensual sexualized imagery.
What xAI is arguing
In its filing, xAI says its image tool, Grok Imagine, already requires users to accept terms of service prohibiting the generation of child sexual abuse material or explicit depictions of real people without consent, and that the company pursues legal action against users who circumvent those safeguards. The company argues Minnesota’s law imposes strict liability on AI providers regardless of the precautions they’ve taken, and applies even when the depicted person consented or when an image carries artistic, political, or educational value.
xAI’s complaint also challenges the law’s definition of an “intimate part,” arguing it’s broad enough to cover images of people in swimwear or without shirts — including, per the filing, AI-generated images of senior government officials. The company is asking the court to declare the law unconstitutional and to bar Ellison’s office from enforcing it.
117M+
People who had used Grok as of March 2026, per an SEC filing
$500K
Maximum fine per violating image under HF 1606
132–1
Minnesota House vote in favor of the ban
A pattern of legal challenges
This isn’t the first time Musk’s companies have gone to court over a Minnesota tech statute. xAI previously sued the state over a separate law restricting the dissemination of political deepfakes, and the company has also challenged a California law aimed at curbing AI-generated election disinformation — a challenge that led a federal judge to partially strike down that statute.
Independent of the Minnesota suit, xAI faces a proposed class-action lawsuit accusing Grok of being used to generate sexualized and abusive images of real people — including content described as child sexual abuse material — and alleging the company failed to report suspected offenders to authorities. xAI has said it strictly prohibits users from creating nonconsensual nude or sexualized images and takes action against those who bypass its filters.
State Rep. Jessica Hanson, a Democrat who backed the legislation, has defended the law as a response to a rise in AI-generated harassment, including cases where nudification tools were used against schoolgirls. Minnesota’s is the first statewide ban of its kind in the country, and how courts rule on xAI’s challenge could shape whether other states pursue similar restrictions.
What is Minnesota’s AI nudification law?
HF 1606 is a Minnesota statute, signed by Gov. Tim Walz, banning AI “nudification” tools used to generate sexually explicit images of real people without consent. It takes effect August 1, 2026, and lets both individual victims and the state attorney general sue over violations.
Why is xAI suing over the law?
xAI argues the law is written too broadly — imposing strict liability on AI providers regardless of safeguards, and potentially covering satirical, artistic, or consented-to content rather than just nonconsensual deepfakes.
Is this the first time xAI has sued over a state AI law?
No. xAI previously sued Minnesota over a separate political deepfakes law, and has challenged a California law targeting AI-generated election disinformation, part of which a federal judge partially struck down.
Does xAI face other legal issues involving Grok?
Yes. Separately, xAI faces a proposed class-action suit alleging Grok was used to generate sexualized and abusive images of real people, including content described as CSAM, and that the company failed to report suspected offenders.
