Expanding experiences and anxieties: gender-identity and sexual-orientation differences in attitudes toward synthetic pornography

Media-technology innovations have long been animated by demand for sexual content, and generative artificial intelligence (AI) is no exception. Synthetic pornography (SP) (distinct from deepfakes) comprises machine-generated visual media depicting non-actual bodies engaging in sexual activities. SP represents a complex convergence of pornography and AI with their historical challenges and opportunities for people of varied gender identities and sexual orientations. This descriptive study offers a baseline account of attitudes toward SP compared across social groups. Leveraging an online survey and a clear definition of SP, we observed quantitative and qualitative differences in attitudes among people with differing gender identities and sexual orientations. The findings indicate idiosyncratic concerns and hopes that may be interpretable in relation to gendered anxieties; observations indicate that attitudes toward SP may not be stable or well formed at this stage in the technology’s emergence.