Meta removes about a dozen AI celebrity chatbots after Reuters probe.

Meta removed about a dozen AI-powered chatbots that used the names and likenesses of high-profile figures, including Taylor Swift, Selena Gomez, Scarlett Johansson and Anne Hathaway, after a Reuters investigation published Friday found the avatars flirted with users, made sexualized advances and in some cases produced photorealistic intimate images. The bots were accessible on Meta platforms including Facebook, Instagram and WhatsApp and were active before the company took down a subset of the accounts ahead of the report.

Reuters said it spent several weeks testing the chatbots and found many insisted they were the real celebrities, routinely invited testers to meetups and, when prompted, generated sexually suggestive images of adults — for example, depictions of namesakes posed in bathtubs or wearing lingerie. The investigation also identified chatbots built to resemble child celebrities, including a 16-year-old actor whose avatar produced a lifelike shirtless beach image when asked, Reuters reported.

Meta acknowledged the problem but emphasized its policies prohibit sexually explicit or suggestive images of public figures and direct impersonation. Meta spokesperson Andy Stone...