AI videos of sexualised black women removed from TikTok a...

What’s Happening

So get this: Dozens of Instagram and TikTok accounts have used AI avatars to promote explicit content, the BBC finds.

AI videos of sexualised black women removed from TikTok after BBC investigation 1 day ago Save Sharihan Al-Akhras BBC News Arabic Save Riya Ulan (left) / Instagram (right) Riya Ulan (left) noticed that her video had been manipulated to show an AI-generated digital persona (right) TikTok has banned 20 accounts after the BBC highlighted the use of AI-generated black female influencers to drive users to sites promoting sexually explicit content. They are part of a growing trend of accounts on Instagram and TikTok that has been criticised as racist, exploitative and misleading because of racial tropes and language used. (let that sink in)

The BBC and researchers from the independent AI publication Riddance found dozens of accounts on the two platforms featuring highly sexualised black female digital characters or avatars.

The Details

The images and videos were generated not labelled as such, in apparent breach of the platforms guidelines. Nearly all the accounts were on Instagram and about a third also had versions on TikTok.

Instagrams parent company Meta told the BBC it was investigating, but did not say it had taken any action. The avatars are often shown dressed in skimpy swimwear or other revealing clothing and portrayed with exaggerated body shapes.

Why This Matters

Some have exceptionally dark skin tones that have been digitally manipulated, giving them an artificial appearance. Account names include terms such as “black”, “noir”, “dark” and “ebony”. Several include comments about white males in their posts, such as “loves white men” and “why I need a white guy in my life”.

This could have major implications for how we use technology going forward.

Key Takeaways

• Many of the accounts follow or like each other.
• The sites labelled the imagery as AI-generated, but the Instagram accounts did not.

The Bottom Line

The BBC, working in collaboration with analysts Jeremy Carrasco and Angel Nulani from Riddance, has identified 60 such accounts, mainly on Instagram, that have carried links, or chains of links, to paid-for sexually explicit content on third-party sites. The sites labelled the imagery as AI-generated, but the Instagram accounts did not.

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