Uthmeier: AI company allows people to generate sexually explicit pictures of kids
An artificial intelligence company allows users to generate sexually explicit pictures and videos of minors, or “nudify” them, Attorney General James Uthmeier alleged in a legal complaint Wednesday.
Filed in state Circuit Court in Sarasota County, Uthmeier’s suit alleges A2E, an artificial intelligence image platform, committed “unconscionable,” “deceptive,” and “unfair” practices under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act.
“If Defendant’s business practices are not ‘deceptive,’ ‘unfair,’ or–above all–despicably and utterly ‘unconscionable’ under the Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act, what is? They must be stopped,” Uthmeier wrote.
The defendant is Rengstorff Consulting, a Nevada firm that owns A2E. The first allegation in the 26-page suit is that Rengstorff’s product lets “predators” “nudify non-consenting Floridians,” including children, and allows users to alter images of adults to feature child-like appearances.
“Just because you create the vehicle, it doesn’t give you exemption from liability. So while users might be providing images, at the end of the day, this AI software, this is the manufacturing hub that is actually churning out the child porn content. So we want to make them pay. We want to shut them down,” Uthmeier said during a news conference announcing the suit in Orlando.
Uthmeier said his office is investigating possible criminal offenses, too.
In 2025, Florida lawmakers approved a measure that requires social media companies to delete deepfakes, or AI-generated sexual depictions of people created without their consent.
That law is in play, Uthmeier says.
The suit brings a few specific examples, including a Tampa man arrested earlier this year who Uthmeier alleges created more than “100 sexually explicit images of his 6-year-old stepdaughter and 10-year stepson, some with images of the two children performing oral and other sexual acts with him.”
A2E did not respond to a Phoenix request for comment.
The attorney general complains the software warns users it is “strictly prohibited” to apply it to nonconsensual sexual uses but “Defendant attempts to shift all responsibility for compliance to users.”
Also during the news conference Wednesday, Uthmeier announced that the Office of Statewide Prosecution charged a 26-year-old from Kissimmee with 100 felony counts. Uthmeier said Jerry Jesus Reyes was investigated after the National Center for Missing and Exploited Children reported a tip.
Of those counts, one alleged transmission of child pornography and 86 allegations of unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual performance by a child. Thirteen counts alleged unlawful possession of materials depicting sexual activity with animals.
“Disgusting, disturbing, depraved — it’s inhumane,” Uthmeier said.
Uthmeier faces his first election in less than a week. He was appointed to the his post year last year by Gov. Ron DeSantis.
Although Uthmeier has been showing up for Republican political events running up to the election, his public appearances mostly have involve official news conferences. Since his August primary election, he has hosted 26 news conferences.