--- title: "Man Running AI-Powered Porn Site Horrified by What Users Are Asking For" description: "Steven Jones, who runs an AI-generated porn images website, is shocked by what users want the AI to spit out." date: "2024-02-27" modified: "2024-02-27" authors: - name: "Victor Tangermann" job_title: "Senior Editor" link: "https://futurism.com/authors/victor" url: "https://futurism.com/the-byte/man-ai-powered-porn-site-horrified" categories: - "Artificial Intelligence" tags: - "ai porn" - "image generators" - "pornography" - "the digest" --- # Man Running AI-Powered Porn Site Horrified by What Users Are Asking For ![Steven Jones, who runs an AI-generated porn images website, is shocked by what users want the AI to spit out.]() *\Image: Getty / Futurism\* ## Dodgy Prompts In the early 2000s, Steven "Lightspeed" Jones operated a collection of porn websites, netting him half a million dollars a month. Those revenues quickly started drying up with the emergence of free, ad-supported porn streaming websites like Pornhub. But as [the *Washington Post* reports](), thanks to the advent of AI porn engines, Jones has found a way to jump back into the industry. Perhaps unsurprisingly, though, he's found that his new site offering customers an easy way to generate porn images using AI gets into extremely dicey territory — which seemingly came as a shock to Jones. "I see certain things people type in, and I just hope to God they're trying to test the model, like we are," he told *WaPo*. "I hope they don’t actually want to see the things they’re typing in." ## Porn in the Age of AI Jones, who's still only breaking even with his AI porn "dream girl" venture, is struggling to keep customers from generating questionable images. Despite some built-in guardrails, it's not difficult for users to skirt around them. According to the report, Jones' company has a list of 1,000 terms that are blocked, including "high school." Instead of allowing clients to type in their own prompts, Peter Acworth, the owner of BDSM website kink.com, told *WaPo* that he's going for a different approach. "We’re not going to let \[users\] type in a sentence," he said. "It’ll be a series of checkboxes, like 'These are the things I want, and this is the type of person I want.'" Given the chaos we've already seen unfold, that's likely a wise decision. Last month, tech CEOs [watched in shock]() as pornographic deepfakes of Taylor Swift started flooding social media feeds. We've also already come across websites [entirely dedicated]() to churning out an endless feed of graphic, chaotic, and widely varied pornographic imagery using AI. Adult stars are also trying to leverage the tech by [offering AI-powered chatbots](), parading as their virtual clones online. But given enough freedom, the technology is bound to make a mess of the porn industry. "AI can’t replace \[adult\] performers, and people who say that are misunderstanding what performers do," Heather Knox, director of adult performer management services brand Elevated X, told *WaPo*. "But this technology will catch on, and it will get abusive before it gets helpful," she added. Despite struggling with those dubious prompts, Jones remains optimistic, telling *WaPo* that he believes AI-generated video, "porn's holy grail," will become a reality within just two years. And given the [considerable progress]() the technology's made as of late, that may not be as far-fetched as it sounds. **More on AI porn:** *[New Law Would Illegalize AI Taylor Swift Porn Flooding Internet]()* ## Author I've been at Futurism since 2017, where my role has evolved to encompass design, writing, and increasingly editing. I've always been fascinated by space exploration and advanced transportation, which I've leaned into by interviewing luminaries in those fields while closely following the dimensions of policy and regulation that allow next-generation projects to succeed -- or, sometimes, to fail. I'm also keenly interested in the effects of generative AI on society, policies, and democratic institutions, as well as clean energy, physics and biology, and the vagaries of tech leadership. My work for Futurism has been cited by publications including Ars Technica, Gizmodo, PC Magazine, Jalopnik, Fox News, and the New York Post. I spent my childhood living in locations including Manila, the Philippines, and Geneva, Switzerland, attended McGill University, and now live in Toronto, Canada. Before Futurism I worked at AskMen and a small photography studio. In my free time, I'm an avid gardener, foodie, and craft beer lover, as well as a maker of artisanal hot pepper sauces. I have a magnificent dog named Freida. ### Author social links [Bluesky]()