San Francisco orders Apple, Google to pull AI 'nudify' apps

San Francisco's City Attorney's Office sent cease-and-desist letters to Apple and Google demanding removal of 13 AI face-swap "nudify" apps from their app stores. The office says the apps are overwhelmingly used to generate non-consensual nude images targeting women and girls.

Why it matters: This is a city government, not a federal regulator, pressuring app store gatekeepers directly over AI-enabled harm, testing whether Apple and Google will act without new legislation forcing them to. It extends a broader 2026 pattern of nonconsensual-imagery lawsuits and state deepfake laws, and compliance here could become a template other cities point to.