Minnesota goes after Grok directly. The US government accuses xAI of facilitating the creation of realistic sexual images from photos of identifiable people. A new law now bans this type of tool in the state. xAI wants to have her suspended. The conflict is now playing out in court.
In brief
- Since August 1, Minnesota has implemented a law against AI tools used to create false sexual images.
- xAI challenges the text on behalf of the First Amendment.
- Grok was already the subject of investigations and complaints for sexual deepfakes involving minors in particular.
Grok AI directly targeted by Minnesota
The new law targets platforms and software capable of generating realistic sexual images of an identifiable person from an existing photo. Grok finds himself on the front line. In France, justice is already investigating X and Grok after reports concerning sexual deepfakes and images of children.
The text is numbered HF-1606. It passed in the spring with a 132-1 vote in the Minnesota House. The Senate approved it unanimously, 65 votes to zero.
Since August 1, affected companies risk up to $500,000 per image in the event of a violation. Elected officials had notably heard the story of a man who used photos published on social networks to create false sexual images of more than 80 women he knew. Minnesota now wants to cut off access to the tools that allow this kind of manipulation. xAI disagrees.
xAI invokes freedom of expression
Elon Musk’s company took legal action in July to prevent the law from being applied. His main argument is based on the First Amendment to the American Constitution. xAI believes that the Minnesota text covers far too broad a field and could affect images that are nevertheless protected by freedom of expression.
The company cites in particular photos of shirtless people, swimmers and certain forms of political satire. She also criticizes the lack of exception for developers trying to limit abuse. Even an image created with the consent of the person concerned could fall foul of the law.
Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison argues exactly the opposite. For him, the text above all regulates a tool allowing the production of sexual images without consent. He accuses Grok Imagine of having considerably facilitated this type of practice.
The standoff already resembles that engaged with other authorities. In May, Elon Musk publicly attacked the French magistrates who are investigating X and Grok. This time, xAI is directly trying to bring down the law.
Grok already has several cases behind him
Minnesota does not arrive on an empty field. In January, a monitoring organization estimated that Grok had generated more than 23,000 sexualized images of children in just eleven days. Several countries then opened investigations. In March, three minors in California joined a lawsuit against xAI. They accuse Grok of having been used to transform their photos into child abuse content generated by AI.
xAI claims to have reacted. The company says it has suspended more than 50,000 accounts in 2026 and forwarded more than 70,000 reports to the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children.
Grok had already racked up other controversies. In 2025, xAI recognized an error after its AI disseminated hateful content. The Minnesota case goes further. It no longer just asks xAI to fix Grok after an incident. It seeks to impose limits directly in the law. The courts will now have to decide whether Minnesota is regulating a dangerous tool or infringing on constitutionally protected free speech. Grok remains available. The law too.
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