Finji Accuses TikTok of Unauthorized, Harmful AI-Generated Ads

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Indie game publisher Finji accused TikTok of generating and distributing AI-modified ads for its games without consent, despite AI ad tools being disabled. The unauthorized ads depicted racist and sexualized stereotypes of characters, causing reputational harm and violating Finji's rights. Finji discovered the issue through user reports and received inadequate support from TikTok.[AI generated]

Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?

The event explicitly involves AI-generated content (ads) created and published by TikTok without Finji's consent, which altered the character's image in a way that perpetuates racist and sexist stereotypes. This constitutes harm to communities and reputational harm to Finji, fulfilling the criteria for harm under the AI Incident definition. The AI system's use in generating these ads is central to the harm, and the failure of TikTok to properly address the issue further supports the classification as an AI Incident rather than a hazard or complementary information.[AI generated]
AI principles
FairnessTransparency & explainability
Industries
Media, social platforms, and marketing
Affected stakeholders
Business
Harm types
Reputational
Severity
AI incident
Business function:
Marketing and advertisement
AI system task:
Content generationOrganisation/recommenders

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Finji Says TikTok Published Racist AI Ads Of Its Game

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Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The event explicitly involves AI-generated content (ads) created and published by TikTok without Finji's consent, which altered the character's image in a way that perpetuates racist and sexist stereotypes. This constitutes harm to communities and reputational harm to Finji, fulfilling the criteria for harm under the AI Incident definition. The AI system's use in generating these ads is central to the harm, and the failure of TikTok to properly address the issue further supports the classification as an AI Incident rather than a hazard or complementary information.
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Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The event explicitly involves generative AI systems used by TikTok to alter advertisements without consent, producing harmful content that misrepresents characters in a racist and sexist manner. This misuse of AI has directly caused reputational and commercial harm to the game publisher, which qualifies as harm to communities and a violation of rights. The AI system's role is pivotal in generating the offensive content, and the harm has already occurred, making this an AI Incident rather than a hazard or complementary information.
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Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
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Night in the Woods, Tunic Publisher Finji Slams Unauthorized "Racist" TikTok Gen AI Ads | TechRaptor

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Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The event explicitly involves generative AI systems used by TikTok to create ads without the publisher's consent. The ads reportedly depict a Black female protagonist invoking harmful stereotypes, which constitutes harm to communities and a violation of rights. Although no physical harm occurred, the reputational and social harm caused by racist and sexist AI-generated content is significant and directly linked to the AI system's unauthorized use. Therefore, this qualifies as an AI Incident due to realized harm stemming from AI use.
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Finji Accuses TikTok of Running Unauthorized AI-Modified Ads | Outlook Respawn

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Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The event explicitly involves an AI system used by TikTok to generate and distribute altered ads without the consent of the content owner, Finji. The AI-generated ads included harmful stereotypes, which constitute harm to communities and a violation of intellectual property rights. The harm is realized, not just potential, as the ads were distributed and reported by users. The AI system's use was unauthorized and against Finji's settings, indicating misuse or malfunction. Hence, this meets the criteria for an AI Incident rather than a hazard or complementary information.