Minnesota’s ban on “nudify” apps can take effect despite xAI challenge

Minnesota’s ban on apps that generate nonconsensual sexualized images can move forward after a federal judge denied xAI’s request for a temporary restraining order, TechCrunch reports. The law was set to take effect on August 1.

U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank pointed partly to timing, noting that xAI asked for emergency relief nearly three months after the law was signed and only days before it began. The ruling does not settle the underlying constitutional arguments, but it leaves the state’s restrictions in place for now.

The case is part of a wider fight over how governments should regulate synthetic intimate imagery. “Nudify” tools use generative AI to create sexualized images of real people without consent, a use that lawmakers increasingly treat as a direct safety and privacy harm rather than a general speech issue.

For AI companies, the decision is a reminder that courts may be reluctant to pause new safety laws at the last minute. The legal questions remain open, but the immediate result is practical enforcement in Minnesota.