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A group of sex industry experts and advocates wrote an open letter to EU regulators on Thursday, arguing that their voices are being ignored in important debates about policing AI technology, despite them also being involved in the technology’s significant rise.
In response to Europe’s internet regulations, a group of adult industry members, including sex workers, erotic filmmakers, sex tech companies, and sex educators, has asked the European Commission to include them in future negotiations to develop AI regulation, according to the letter seen by WIRED.
The group, which includes erotic film director Erika Lust’s company and the European Sex Workers Rights Alliance campaign group, is a signatory to the Open Mind AI initiative. The group aims to alert the Commission to “significant gaps” in the debate on AI regulation. Campaign coordinators say the current debate strategy excludes direct perspectives on adult content and risks over-regulating already marginalized communities.
“AI is evolving every day. [and] “There are new developments everywhere,” says one of the effort’s leaders, Ana Ornelas, a Berlin-based erotic writer and educator who goes by the pen name Pimenta Citrica. “It’s only natural that people are turning to these new technologies to fulfill their fantasies.”
But deepfakes are now a big threat to AI. 96% of deepfakes are non-consensual “porn,” mostly of women and girls. This is “extremely harmful,” Ornelas says, not just to the people targeted, but also to porn performers. “It’s a threat to both their integrity as people and their livelihoods,” she adds. “But the status quo puts adult content creators, sex workers, and educators at a disadvantage on both sides.” She worries that removing all adult content would sweep legally produced content together with non-consensual material, pushing people into unfiltered AI models.
On August 1, the European Commission Introduced It is billed as the world’s first comprehensive AI law, and its aim is to promote the responsible use of AI across the EU. Previous EU law The initiative aims to crack down on illegal and harmful activity on digital platforms, but organizers say regulators don’t understand the adult industry, which could lead to censorship, draconian measures and misunderstandings.
“We can provide policymakers with the right insights to help them craft regulations that protect fundamental rights and freedoms and foster a more sex-positive online environment,” Ornelas says. The European Commission did not immediately respond to WIRED’s request for comment.
Sex workers and pornography performers have already reported censorship and discrimination linked to international laws regulating sex trafficking and banking. Restricting ServicesAdult industry workers, including sex educators, have also suffered suspensions and removals from tech platforms.
“There’s a lack of awareness about how policies affect our lives,” said Paulita Papel, an adult filmmaker and organizer of the initiative. “We face discrimination. If regulators are trying to protect people’s rights, it would be nice if they could protect everyone’s digital rights.”
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