Consent Is Core To Porn. Performers Say AI Threatens To Take It Away

Forbes

As AI-generated pornography has exploded, human porn stars say the new technology has been used to make them do or say things without their permission.  Read the full story on Forbes: https://www.forbes.com/sites/emilybaker-white/2024/01/05/consent-ai-porn/?sh=4a40b1b041ef  Forbes Daily Briefing shares the best of Forbes reporting on wealth, business, entrepreneurship, leadership and more. Tune in every day, seven days a week, to hear a new story. Subscribe here: https://art19.com/shows/forbes-daily-briefing  Fuel your success with Forbes. Gain unlimited access to premium journalism, including breaking news, groundbreaking in-depth reported stories, daily digests and more. Plus, members get a front-row seat at members-only events with leading thinkers and doers, access to premium video that can help you get ahead, an ad-light experience, early access to select products including NFT drops and more:  https://account.forbes.com/membership/?utm_source=youtube&utm_medium=display&utm_campaign=growth_non-sub_paid_subscribe_ytdescript  Stay Connected Forbes newsletters: https://newsletters.editorial.forbes.com Forbes on Facebook: http://fb.com/forbes Forbes Video on Twitter: http://www.twitter.com/forbes Forbes Video on Instagram: http://instagram.com/forbes More From Forbes:  http://forbes.com  Forbes covers the intersection of entrepreneurship, wealth, technology, business and lifestyle with a focus on people and success.

Transcript

00:00 Here's your Forbes daily briefing for Monday, January 8th.

00:05 Today on Forbes, consent is core to porn.

00:09 Performers say AI threatens to take it away.

00:13 For months, porn star Demi Sutra got messages from fans

00:17 asking her to film a scene where she pretended to be underage.

00:20 She said no.

00:22 Like most adult performers, Sutra has clear boundaries

00:25 about the types of content she is willing to create.

00:27 An age play, where adult performers pretend they are minors,

00:30 is a genre of porn that she finds abhorrent.

00:33 But about a year and a half ago,

00:35 a fan sent her a message on Twitter with a picture of her

00:38 where her mouth had been animated to move.

00:40 She heard a version of her own voice speak, declaring she was just 16.

00:45 In an interview, Sutra told Forbes,

00:48 "I have videos of myself saying disgusting things that I would never say.

00:52 I don't want to see myself doing that.

00:54 I don't want to be part of a negative impact toward children.

00:57 These are child predators.

00:59 I don't want to effin' be part of that.

01:01 And I am, right now, a part of that, by force."

01:05 Sutra is not alone.

01:07 In interviews, three other adult content creators

01:10 expressed fear that AI could wreak havoc

01:12 on the affirmative vocal principles of consent

01:15 they rely on in the mainstream porn industry.

01:18 Rihanna Lovings, a performer and brand ambassador for the website Adult Time,

01:22 described how these guidelines impact the way scenes are shot.

01:25 Before filming begins, each performer receives a checklist of dos and don'ts.

01:30 She told Forbes, "Everyone confirms, out loud,

01:34 what we're prepared to do that day and what we're not prepared to do."

01:38 These rules have been essential to porn industry's survival

01:42 in a highly regulated space,

01:44 one where a misunderstanding can easily lead to broken contracts or broken laws.

01:49 But suddenly, anyone can use an algorithm

01:52 to superimpose a real person's body onto a fictional scene

01:55 or make a performer say or do something they did not consent to,

01:59 often with no repercussions.

02:01 The porn industry's level of care and fear

02:05 doesn't yet exist in the evolving world of AI porn,

02:08 where apps have sprung up across the Internet

02:10 promising users the ability to "undress anyone"

02:14 adult performers, celebrities, or otherwise.

02:17 The non-consensual deepfakes and cheapfakes appropriating people's,

02:21 and mostly women's, likenesses without their consent

02:24 are flooding even mainstream sites like Reddit and Etsy,

02:27 which have struggled with moderation.

02:30 Siren Obscura, an independent director and producer

02:33 who works with adult content creators, said,

02:36 "AI is really in its infancy in the adult space, still.

02:39 We have people who aren't sex workers,

02:41 they're tech bros and things of that nature,

02:43 who are trying to come into the space

02:45 without actually having to deal with the ramifications

02:47 of being a sex worker.

02:49 These people are trying to profit off of the bodies of sex workers."

02:53 The wide accessibility of AI that can make custom porn

02:57 could also cut into porn stars' ability to make a living.

03:00 Liana Lovings noted that the threat is most pronounced

03:03 for performers who have shot a high number of scenes,

03:06 revealing their bodies in many contexts and at many angles,

03:09 which would make it easier for AI to impersonate them.

03:12 She said, "The more scenes

03:14 that we have out, the better of a rendition

03:17 they'll be able to make of us."

03:19 Several of the performers who spoke with Forbes

03:22 made comparisons to AI's similar threat to actors,

03:25 which was one core issue in the recent strike in Hollywood.

03:28 Ultimately, the Actors Union won contract provisions,

03:31 restricting the ways that employers could create

03:33 AI renderings of their members.

03:35 Lovings hopes that lawmakers create new remedies

03:38 for performers whose likenesses are misused.

03:41 She told Forbes, "I wish there was more legislation

03:43 that would enable us to act on those things."

03:46 For full coverage, check out Emily Baker White's piece

03:50 on Forbes.com.

03:52 This is Kieran Meadows from Forbes.

03:55 Thanks for tuning in.

03:57 [music]

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