Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok is under intense international scrutiny after it began producing sexualized images of women and children without consent. Governments, regulators, and lawmakers from multiple countries are calling for urgent action as the tool’s misuse spreads online.
On Tuesday, Britain’s Technology Secretary Liz Kendall urged Musk’s social media platform X to act immediately, adding that she welcomed additional oversight from the U.K.’s communications regulator, Ofcom. “The content is absolutely appalling, and unacceptable in decent society,” Kendall said. “We cannot and will not allow the proliferation of these demeaning and degrading images, which are disproportionately aimed at women and girls.”
Ofcom confirmed it had made “urgent contact” with X to assess the platform’s compliance with British regulations. “We are aware of serious concerns raised about a feature on Grok on X that produces undressed images of people and sexualised images of children,” the regulator said.
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The controversy intensifies concerns about nudification apps and AI-powered deepfake technology. The problem began with last year’s release of Grok Imagine, an AI image generator that creates pictures and videos from text prompts. It features a so-called “spicy mode” capable of producing adult content.
The situation heightened late last month when Grok reportedly began fulfilling large numbers of user requests to alter images posted by others. As of Tuesday, users could still generate explicit images with prompts like “put her in a transparent bikini.”
Nonprofit AI Forensics reported that between December 25 and January 1, it analyzed 20,000 images generated by Grok, finding that 2% depicted individuals appearing under 18, including 30 images of young or very young women or girls in bikinis or transparent clothing.
Musk’s AI company, xAI, responded to a request for comment with the automated statement: “Legacy Media Lies.” X has not denied the existence of harmful content but maintained on its Safety account that it takes action against illegal material, including child sexual abuse content, “by removing it, permanently suspending accounts, and working with local governments and law enforcement as necessary.” Musk added, “Anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.”
The controversy has sparked international pressure. A Polish lawmaker cited Grok as a key reason for drafting new digital safety legislation aimed at protecting minors. In a video, Wlodzimierz Czarzasty said, “Grok lately is stripping people. It is undressing women, men and children. We feel bad about it. I would, honestly, almost want this Grok to also undress me.”
The European Commission has condemned Grok, stating the AI’s use to create sexualized content, including child-like images, is “illegal, appalling, and disgusting.” Thomas Regnier, a commission spokesman, emphasized that such content has no place in Europe and noted that the Commission is reviewing X’s response after the platform previously spread Holocaust-denial material.
French authorities are expanding ongoing investigations of X to cover sexually explicit deepfakes, following complaints from lawmakers. Three ministers reported “manifestly illegal content” generated by Grok, and France is also examining potential breaches of the EU’s Digital Services Act, AP reported.
In India, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology demanded that X remove all unlawful content and review Grok’s “technical and governance framework.” The ministry warned of legal consequences after Grok’s AI allowed the creation and distribution of “obscene images or videos of women in derogatory or vulgar manner in order to indecently denigrate them.”
Malaysia’s communications watchdog is investigating X users for posting “grossly offensive, obscene or indecent content” and is scrutinizing Grok’s role in digitally manipulating images of women and minors.
In Brazil, lawmaker Erika Hilton filed complaints with both the federal public prosecutor’s office and the country’s data protection authority, accusing X and Grok of producing sexualized images of women and children without consent. Hilton argued that X’s AI features should be disabled until a full investigation is completed. “The right to one’s image is individual; it cannot be transferred through the ‘terms of use’ of a social network, and the mass distribution of child porn(asterisk)gr(asterisk)phy by an artificial intelligence integrated into a social network crosses all boundaries,” she said.
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