Microsoft Says No To AI Erotica Bots In Clear Break With OpenAI And xAI Playbooks

• Microsoft's AI chief, Mustafa Suleyman, says the company will not develop AI capable of producing erotic content.
• Microsoft's position contrasts that of OpenAI, which last week said upcoming ChatGPT versions would allow it for verified adult users.
• Suleyman says AI erotica is catching up and that it is a dangerous trend.

Microsoft AI CEO Mustafa Suleyman said on Thursday that the company will not develop AI capable of "simulated erotica," taking a stance that contrasts with longtime partner OpenAI and Elon Musk's xAI.

"That's just not a service we're going to provide," Suleyman said at the Paley International Council Summit in California, as reported by CNBC. "Other companies will build that." 

Last week, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman said upcoming versions of ChatGPT will permit a broader range of content, including erotica. He added that verified adult users would have access to such material, as the company believes in "treat(ing) adult users like adults."

xAI's Grok AI assistant, which launched as a standalone app earlier this year, permits a broader range of adult interactions than rival services. Grok's companions feature, such as the character "Ani", reportedly allows sexualized interactions, and the company recently added a "Spicy" mode that allows users to generate sexually explicit images.

Suleyman's comments underscore the different approaches AI creators are taking. To be sure, Microsoft's Copilot AI is primarily used by enterprise users, while ChatGPT likely has a better mix of enterprise and general consumers. 

On Thursday, Suleyman said the creation of seemingly conscious AI is already happening, primarily with erotica-focused services. He referenced Altman's comments and Elon Musk's Grok.

"You can already see it with some of these avatars and people leaning into the kind of sexbot erotica direction," Suleyman said. "This is very dangerous, and I think we should be making conscious decisions to avoid those kinds of things."

On Stocktwits, the retail sentiment for MSFT was 'neutral' as of late Thursday, compared to 'bearish' the previous day. The stock is up 23.5% year-to-date.

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