We need to talk about the damage being done to people drawn to AI porn

When reports spread that users on X were asking the platform’s artificial intelligence (AI) chatbot Grok to turn photographs of celebrities and non-public figures – including minors –

 into sexualised images

, public outrage rightly focused on the violation inflicted on the victims. The majority of this content targets women, and it causes reputational damage and psychological distress.

But there’s another kind of damage that is being overlooked in the discourse: what this technology does to the people who create these images. This isn’t an attempt to summon sympathy for bad actors. It’s worthy of attention because naming the self-inflicted costs could act as a much-needed deterrent.