According to The Guardian, a U.K. man who used AI to create child sexual abuse material (CSAM) has been sentenced to 18 years in prison. Hugh Nelson, 27, created these images using photos of real children, which were then manipulated by AI. Nelson was convicted of 16 child sexual abuse offenses in August following a lengthy police investigation. It was the first trial of its kind in the U.K. Nelson used modeling software called Daz 3D to create the disgusting images.
The program contains a set of AI tools, which he used to turn regular photos of children into CSAM. Greater Manchester Police said he sold these images online and in several cases was also commissioned to create specific items of CSAM using photos of real children.
Police say Nelson made about $6,500 selling the images online. He was caught while trying to sell the photos to an undercover cop in a chatroom. “I’ve done assault, strangulation, hanging, drowning, beheading, necro, beast, it all,” Nelson told the cop in an attempt to entice sales. This is according to a transcript of the conversation provided by prosecutors.
It’s worth noting that Daz doesn’t create 3D deepfakes, in which one face is swapped onto another body. Nelson created real 3D renders by feeding photos to an AI algorithm.
When sentencing, the judge called the images “sadistic and abhorrent” and addressed Nelson specifically, saying, “It seems there is no limit to the depravity displayed in the images you were willing to create and show to others.” He also said it was “impossible to know” whether the images resulted in the abuse of children. A police search of Nelson’s devices found numerous text messages in which he encouraged people to sexually abuse children under the age of 13. These suspects and potential victims are reportedly located all over the world, including the US.
Of course, the United States is not immune to this frightening trend either. In August, a soldier was arrested for allegedly using AI to generate CSAM. A Wisconsin man faces up to 70 years in prison for creating more than 13,000 AI-generated images depicting CSAM. The world’s leading AI companies have signed a pledge to help prevent such software from being used to create child sexual abuse material.
Amid signs of stagnation in the economy, Britain is focusing entirely on AI. On Monday, British minister Keir Starmer announced a new AI Opportunity Action Plan. At the heart of the initiative are “AI Growth Zones,” which the government plans to set up in non-industrial areas across the country.
In these zones, the Labor government will speed up planning approvals for data centers and provide better access to the national energy grid. Starmer said Britain’s first AI growth zone would be set up in Culham, Oxfordshire, home to the country’s nuclear energy authority. More zones will be announced in the summer.
Also, Starmer’s government plans to increase state-owned computing capacity by 20 times, starting with the “immediate” construction of a new supercomputer with “enough AI power to play chess half a million times per second.” As of November 2024, the UK has 14 supercomputers on the TOP500 list, placing it well behind the US and China.
In addition, the plan will see the government establish a National Data Library, which it says will make the country more attractive to investors by allowing private industry to “unlock the value of public data safely and securely.” Finally, a new AI Energy Council will work with energy companies to meet the AI industry’s electricity demands, in line with the government’s clean energy strategy.
“Artificial intelligence will bring incredible change to our country. From helping teachers personalise lessons, to helping small businesses keep their records, to speeding up planning applications, it has the potential to transform the lives of working people,” Starmer said. “But the AI industry needs a government that is on their side, that doesn’t sit back and let opportunities slip through their fingers. And in a world of fierce competition, we can’t afford to sit idly by.”
Over the next 10 years, Starmer’s government estimates that their strategy could generate up to £47 billion ($57 billion) in annual economic growth. The announcement comes after the UK economy failed to grow in the third quarter of last year. From that perspective, making the country more attractive to outside investment isn’t the worst idea – especially when companies like Microsoft plan to spend $80 billion on new data centres this year.