LeBron James files cease-and-desist over AI 'deepfake' videos

LeBron James is taking action in response to some unflattering “deepfake” videos of him that were generated by artificial intelligence.

The Los Angeles Lakers forward James and his legal team have sent a cease-and-desist letter to the creators of an AI tool and Discord community that allowed users to make fake videos of various NBA stars (including James). The news was reported on Thursday by Jason Koebler of 404 Media.

The company in question is called Interlink AI, which reportedly runs on a larger AI generation platform named FlickUp. On Interlink AI’s Discord channel, detailed instructions were given on how to make AI-generated videos of James, Steph Curry, and other NBA stars.

Koebler adds that some of the videos generated by users included “James imagined as a homeless person, videos of James on his knees with his tongue out, and videos of James pregnant.” These videos were made by prominent creators and were able to rack up millions of views upon being shared to Instagram.

However, Koebler also notes that Interlink AI has since decided to remove all “realistic people models” from their platform in the wake of James’ cease-and-desist letter. You can read Koebler’s full report on the situation here.

AI tools have exploded in popularity in just about every corner of society over the last several years. Even the NBA has recently begun to embrace AI for various purposes.

But now James appears to be taking a stand against the non-consensual use of his image in AI-generated videos, many of which were highly offensive. This news also comes just a day after James was seemingly accused by a former NBA All-Star of using steroids (though the figure in question has since backtracked on the claim).