XAI blocked from enforcing Minnesota nudification law by 8th Circuit

The 8th US Circuit Court of Appeals issued a stay on Thursday blocking Minnesota from enforcing HF 1606, its law targeting AI-generated non-consensual intimate imagery, while xAI's First Amendment challenge proceeds.

xAI, Elon Musk's artificial intelligence company, filed suit against Minnesota Attorney General Keith Ellison in late July, days before the law took effect on August 1. A federal district court denied a temporary restraining order on July 31, then refused a preliminary injunction in September, citing xAI's delay in filing. The 8th Circuit has now granted the relief the lower court twice withheld.

HF 1606 bars generating nude imagery from real photographs of identifiable individuals without their consent. The law passed with near-total legislative agreement. xAI argues it sweeps beyond abusive content and restricts speech protected by the First Amendment, including parody and consensual imagery. Supporters say it addresses harms that AI tools have made trivially easy to inflict.