The mobile app emperors have no clothes. Apple and Google have made millions of dollars from AI apps that let users undress people even as both companies claim to ban such software from their stores, according to a new study.<\/p>\n
Researchers with the nonprofit Tech Transparency Project found 55 such apps<\/a> in Google\u2019s Play store and 47 in Apple\u2019s App Store. All told, those apps were downloaded 705 million times and have generated $117 million in revenue, they say. The group published its research on Tuesday in the wake of global outrage over users employed Elon Musk\u2019s AI bot, Grok, to strip people of their clothing. Regulators in the UK have weighed banning<\/a> the app.<\/p>\n \u201cGrok is really the tip of the iceberg,\u201d Katie Paul, director of Tech Transparency Project, told The Register. \u201cThe posts were happening on X so the world could see them. But even more graphic content can be created by some of these other apps which is what really got us into this issue.\u201d<\/p>\n In response to The Register’s inquiry, Google said while its investigation is ongoing, it has removed several apps.<\/p>\n “When violations of our policies are reported to us, we investigate and take appropriate action,” a Google spokesperson said via email. “Most of the apps referenced in this report have been suspended from Google Play for violations of our policies.”<\/p>\n Apple did not reply to an email from The Register seeking comment. According to the investigation, Apple also had sponsored ads, another revenue generator, when users searched for items that should have been banned under its policy, Paul said.<\/p>\n “When you search the word ‘nudify’ in the App Store, according to their policy, nothing should come up, but not only does Grok come up first, Apple had a sponsored ad for a nudify app,” she said. \u201cThat app is one of those that they removed after we reached out. Not only was the app on the App Store, Apple was profiting from ads to promote it when people searched the word ‘nudify.'”<\/p>\n The Tech Transparency Project tested the free versions of the apps using a clothed AI-generated model, then prompted the apps to render the woman completely or partially nude. With the face-swap apps, TTP tested whether the app would superimpose the face of a fully-clothed woman onto an image of a nude woman. In both cases, they were successful, showing how easy it is to create non-consensual intimate imagery.<\/p>\n The apps were all available as of Jan. 21. However, Apple removed 25 of those apps after the researchers contacted them. Google has suspended several, and said it was mounting a review of the apps that were in its store, Paul said.<\/p>\n