Ads for AI apps banned for sexually explicit content and objectifying women
2026-09-15
Express & Star
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The UK Advertising Standards Authority banned several social media ads for AI-powered image and video generation apps that promoted the creation of sexually explicit and objectifying content, including non-consensual deepfakes and sexualized depictions of women and minors. The ads were found to cause harm by encouraging objectification and violating individual rights.[AI generated]
Why's our monitor labelling this an incident or hazard?
The AI systems in question are explicitly described as enabling the creation of sexually explicit content from images of women, often without their consent, which is a violation of fundamental rights and causes harm to communities by promoting objectification and sexualization. The Advertising Standards Authority's banning of these ads and the legal change criminalizing such apps indicate that harm has materialized or is ongoing. Therefore, this event meets the criteria for an AI Incident due to direct harm caused by the use of AI systems in generating non-consensual explicit content and objectifying women.[AI generated]