AI used to make 'fetishized' images of disabled women

This file photo taken on February 9, 2022 shows the logo of video-focused social networking service TikTok, at the TikTok UK office, in London. TOLGA AKMEN/AFP

British charities and disability advocates have slammed a trend for using AI to generate "fetishized" images of women with disabilities and genetic conditions including Down syndrome, vitiligo and albinism.

The photo-realistic sexualized images, which have gained millions of views on social media, are deceptive as they are often not labeled as AI-generated. Some account owners use artificial intelligence to manipulate real images of non-disabled women, making them appear to have Down syndrome, a genetic condition caused by an extra chromosome. One such TikTok video of a young woman dancing in shorts and a cropped top has had four million views since last year.

The British Down's Syndrome Association condemned the "alarming trend."

Subscribers only