(Jan 12): The UK communications regulator has opened a formal probe into Elon Musk’s social media site X, adding to the global backlash against sexually suggestive images generated using the artificial intelligence tool Grok.
Ofcom’s formal investigation will establish whether X, a subsidiary of xAI, failed to comply with the Online Safety Act, which requires social media platforms to ensure users’ safety, the regulator said in a statement on Monday (Jan 12). The UK watchdog has the power to fine or block services that violate the law. Ofcom will next analyse evidence gathered from the company and issue a provisional decision.
A representative for X did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Grok has fewer guardrails than other mainstream AI tools and allows users to manipulate photos to put the subject in underwear or a skimpy bathing suit. The crackdown comes after Grok users created thousands of non-consensual, sexually suggestive images of children and women on X, provoking condemnation from lawmakers around the world.
It’s illegal in the UK to own or share any sexual images of children and to share intimate footage of people without consent, including material generated by AI.
Business Secretary Peter Kyle on Monday told Times Radio that the government “of course” would consider banning X, but that the law requires ministers to let the regulator do its job.
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X users can interact with Grok directly on the platform by tagging its account in posts and prompting the chatbot to respond. Grok generates text and images that appear as posts on the social network. After users flooded the tool with requests to “undress” people, xAI began restricting the image-generation tool to paid users on X, though it was still free on the standalone Grok app.
Musk also this month posted a warning that anyone using Grok to make illegal content would “suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.” XAI has said it will take down posts that break the law, including child sexual abuse material, and suspend accounts.
Governments and regulators have criticised or blocked Grok for generating sexual content.
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Indonesia and Malaysia temporarily blocked the tool over the weekend.
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s office said xAI limiting Grok’s image generation capabilities to paid users on X didn’t go far enough. The restriction “simply turns an AI feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service: It’s not a solution,” Starmer’s spokesman Geraint Ellis told reporters in a briefing on Friday. “It’s insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence. What it does prove is that X can move swiftly when it wants to do so.”
The Internet Watch Foundation, a body designated by the UK government to identify child sexual abuse material, said it found “criminal” images of children on the dark web allegedly generated by Grok.
The European Union’s executive arm ordered X to retain internal documents relating to Grok until the end of the year. The EU had condemned some of the explicit images of children on the platform as illegal.
The French government has accused Grok of generating “clearly illegal” sexual content on X without consent, flagging the matter as potentially violating the EU’s Digital Services Act. The regulation requires large platforms to mitigate the risk of illegal content spreading.
Uploaded by Arion Yeow
