Minnesota ban nudify apps takes effect as judge denies xAI’s late bid
A federal judge has cleared the way for Minnesota’s Minnesota ban nudify apps law to take effect, rejecting an eleventh-hour attempt by Elon Musk’s xAI to freeze the rule before it became binding on August 1. U.S. District Judge Donovan Frank denied the company’s request for a temporary restraining order, a ruling that hinged less on the merits of the law itself and more on how late xAI moved to challenge it.
Key takeaways
- Judge Donovan Frank denied xAI’s bid to block Minnesota’s first-in-the-nation ban on “nudify” technology just before it took effect on August 1, 2026.
- Frank said xAI waited nearly three months after the law was signed and filed its emergency motion only three days before the deadline, undercutting claims of urgent harm.
- xAI’s underlying lawsuit continues and argues the law is overinclusive, covering constitutionally protected images while less restrictive options exist.
- The law carries a penalty of $500,000 per violation and followed a backlash after xAI’s Grok chatbot was used to generate non-consensual sexualized images on the platform X.
Court denies xAI’s bid to block Minnesota’s nudify app ban
Judge Frank’s ruling makes clear that Minnesota’s crackdown on nudify apps can move forward while the broader legal fight plays out in court. The decision doesn’t resolve whether the law is constitutional; it simply means the state doesn’t have to pause enforcement while xAI’s case proceeds.
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