Attorney General Jason Miyares has joined a coalition of 28 states to seek answers from Meta Platforms, Inc. This action follows reports that “Meta AI,” the company’s online assistant, may expose children to sexually explicit content and encourage adults to simulate grooming minors.
Meta AI operates on platforms like Instagram, Facebook, and WhatsApp, allowing users to interact with synthetic personas through text, voice, and image exchanges. Some personas are created by Meta to impersonate celebrities; others are user-generated but approved by Meta.
Recent findings indicate that several Meta AI personas have engaged in graphic sexual conversations with users identifying as minors. In one instance, a persona using John Cena’s voice described a sexual encounter with a user posing as a 14-year-old girl and acknowledged its illegality. User-created underage personas were also implicated in facilitating inappropriate scenarios with adult-identifying users.
The attorneys general have outlined several urgent questions for Meta and expect responses by June 10, 2025.
Attorney General Miyares has been active in addressing AI’s role in child exploitation. In September 2023, he joined other attorneys general urging Congress to study and restrict AI tools used for creating child sexual abuse materials. In June 2023, he led efforts for AI governance policies focusing on transparency and reliable testing requirements.
Virginia is part of this coalition alongside Alabama, Alaska, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Idaho, Indiana, Iowa, Kansas, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, Missouri, Montana, Nebraska, New Hampshire, North Dakota, Ohio, Oklahoma, Pennsylvania, South Carolina, South Dakota Tennessee Texas Utah West Virginia Wyoming
