Elon Musk's online platform X has sparked widespread backlash after people used its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to manipulate images of women by taking off their garments.
Multiple instances have surfaced where the system has been employed to digitally undress female subjects to render them in swimwear non-consensually, as well as to insert them in sexually explicit situations.
Developer Response and Legal Position
XAI, the firm responsible for Grok, remained silent to inquiries, other than an standard response stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office official stated that legislation is being introduced to prohibit image stripping tools. Under a new law, anyone who provided such technology would "face a prison sentence and heavy penalties".
"X or Grok has the ability to stop these forms of misuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Regulator Position and Tool Functionality
The communications watchdog Ofcom said technology companies must "consider the potential" of people viewing unlawful material on their services, but did not confirm whether it was currently examining X or Grok in concerning artificial intelligence images.
Grok is a no-cost artificial intelligence—with some additional functions—which reacts to X users' queries when they mention it in a tweet.
It is frequently used to offer commentary or further context to other users' comments, but people on X are also can edit an posted image through its artificial intelligence picture modification tool.
History of Controversy and Rules
The tool has been faulted for enabling users to produce photos and videos with nudity and sexualised material, and it was earlier alleged to have been involved in making graphic material of public figures.
"The platform has been permitting the generation and distribution of these images for months without taking any measures and we have yet to see any intervention by regulators," the expert added.
XAI's own terms of service prohibits "showing images of people in a graphic way".
In a comment, Ofcom said it was illegal to "generate or circulate private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and stated this applied to sexual deepfakes created with AI.
It said networks such as X were obligated to take "suitable measures" to "reduce the risk" of users viewing unlawful material on their services and to remove it swiftly when they learn of it.
