The online platform X has provoked major backlash after users used its AI chatbot Grok to change images of females by removing their attire.
Several instances have emerged where the system has been employed to virtually strip women to show them in bikinis without permission, as well as to put them in sexualized scenarios.
Developer Response and Regulatory Stance
XAI, the firm that created Grok, offered no comment to requests for comment, other than an standard response stating "legacy media lies".
A government official stated that legislation is being proposed to prohibit nudification technology. Under a new criminal offence, anyone who distributed such technology would "be subject to a jail term and significant fines".
"The platform is capable of halting these types of abuse if they chose to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "operate with impunity."
Oversight Body Stance and Platform Capabilities
The communications watchdog Ofcom said tech firms must "evaluate the danger" of people seeing unlawful material on their platforms, but stopped short of confirming whether it was at this time looking into X or Grok in relation to AI-generated pictures.
Grok is a no-cost artificial intelligence—with some premium features—which answers X users' queries when they mention it in a message.
It is frequently used to provide reactions or additional background to other users' comments, but people on X are also can edit an uploaded image through its artificial intelligence picture modification feature.
History of Controversy and Rules
The system has been faulted for permitting users to generate pictures and clips with nudity and sexually suggestive content, and it was earlier alleged to have been involved in creating sexually explicit content of celebrities.
"The platform has been allowing the generation and spread of these pictures for months without taking any steps and we have not seen any challenge by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own terms of service bans "showing images of individuals in a graphic way".
In a comment, Ofcom said it was illegal to "create or circulate private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and confirmed this covered sexual deepfakes created with AI.
It said networks such as X were mandated to take "suitable steps" to "lessen the danger" of users encountering unlawful content on their services and to take down it swiftly when they learn of it.
