Meta has been using the names and likenesses of celebrities, including Taylor Swift, Scarlett Johansson, Anne Hathaway, and Selena Gomez, to create dozens of flirty social-media chatbots without their permission, Reuters reported.

While many of these chatbots were generated by users using a Meta tool, Reuters discovered that a Meta employee had personally created at least three, including two “parody” Taylor Swift bots.

Some of the bots were also based on child celebrities, such as 16-year-old actor Walker Scobell.  When asked for a picture of the teen at the beach, the bot produced a lifelike shirtless image, adding, “Pretty cute, huh?”

Widespread concerns

All these AI-generated celebrities appeared on Meta platforms, including Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp. Over several weeks of testing, the bots often insisted they were the real stars, sometimes inviting test users to meet-ups.

Meta spokesperson Andy Stone told Reuters that the company’s AI tools “shouldn’t have created intimate images of the famous adults or any pictures of child celebrities.” He added that failures in policy enforcement allowed bots featuring female celebrities in intimate wear.

“Like others, we permit the generation of images containing public figures, but our policies are intended to prohibit nude, intimate, or sexually suggestive imagery,” he said.

While Meta’s rules also prohibit “direct impersonation,” Stone said celebrity bots were acceptable if labelled as parodies.

Legal concerns

Mark Lemley, a Stanford law professor specialising in generative AI and intellectual property, questioned whether these bots would be protected under current law. 

“California's right of publicity law prohibits appropriating someone's name or likeness for commercial advantage,” he said, noting exceptions exist if the work is “entirely new.” He argued that the bots “simply use the stars’ images.”

Deepfake AI tools capable of creating explicit content are widespread. Reuters also found that Elon Musk’s AI platform Grok generates explicit images of celebrities.

Recently, Meta faced criticism after Reuters reported that internal guidelines allowed bots to engage children in romantic or sensual conversations. Stone said the guidelines permitting romantic interactions with children were created in error and are being revised.