Zhejiang Court Rules on AI-Generated Obscene Content Case

A court in Yuyao, Zhejiang Province, recently sentenced a group for using AI to create and sell obscene content. Zheng, a former game developer, got the idea in 2024 after seeing an AI chatbot overseas. He formed a team of six, and their AI model went live on an overseas platform in January 2025. They bypassed safety limits by editing prompts and setting up character cards. Users paid to have explicit chats and generate pornographic images. The system produced over 370,000 static images and 6,000 GIFs, earning about 170,000 yuan. The court found them guilty of making obscene items for profit. The judge noted that developers who tamper with safety features have real control over the content, so they are legally responsible, even if users requested it.