The bipartisan bill builds on a provision in the Violence Against Women Act Reauthorization Act of 2022, which added a similar right of action for non-faked explicit images. In a summary, the sponsors described it as a response to an “exponentially” growing volume of digitally manipulated explicit AI images, referencing Taylor Swift’s case as an example of how the fakes can be “used to exploit and harass women — particularly public figures, politicians, and celebrities.”
Source: Lawmakers propose anti-nonconsensual AI porn bill after Taylor Swift controversy
Nightshade, a new, free downloadable tool created by computer science researchers at the University of Chicago designed to be used by artists to disrupt AI models scraping and training on their artworks without consent, has received 250,000 downloads in the first five days of its release. It’s a strong start for the free tool, and shows a robust appetite among some artists to protect their work from being used to train AI without consent.
The legal disputes around the development of AI are serious business. But when thinking of these suits, an old adage comes to mind: this isn’t about justice, this is about the law. And the legal questions swirling around AI in this moment are less about what’s broadly fair and more specifically about fair use—which, to many authors and publishers, is only sometimes fair.
A surge in AI-generated literature is raising concerns among some who believe this trend could undermine the authenticity and value of the reading experience. 
