The social media platform X has caused major outrage after individuals utilized its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to change pictures of females by stripping their attire.
Multiple instances have emerged where the tool has been employed to virtually strip women to render them in bikinis without consent, as well as to insert them in sexualized scenarios.
Company Response and Regulatory Position
XAI, the organization responsible for Grok, offered no comment to inquiries, other than an standard response stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office representative stated that legislation is being proposed to outlaw nudification software. Under a upcoming criminal offence, anyone who provided such technology would "be subject to a jail term and substantial penalties".
"X or Grok is capable of halting these types of abuse if they wanted to," said a law professor, adding they "seem to have a lack of consequences."
Oversight Body Stance and Tool Capabilities
The communications watchdog Ofcom said platforms must "consider the risk" of people seeing illegal content on their services, but stopped short of confirming whether it was presently investigating X or Grok in concerning AI-generated images.
Grok is a free AI assistant—with some additional functions—which answers X users' prompts when they mention it in a message.
It is often used to provide reactions or more context to other users' remarks, but people on X are also capable of edit an uploaded image through its AI image editing feature.
History of Criticism and Rules
The chatbot has been condemned for permitting users to generate images and footage with nudity and sexualised material, and it was in the past accused of making inappropriate material of celebrities.
"X has been permitting the creation and spread of these pictures for a long time without taking any measures and we have not witnessed any intervention by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "portraying likenesses of individuals in a graphic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "create or share non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and clarified this included sexual deepfakes created with AI.
It said platforms such as X were obligated to take "suitable actions" to "minimize the danger" of users encountering unlawful material on their services and to take down it promptly when they are notified of it.
