Elon Musk's online network X has sparked widespread outrage after users utilized its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate pictures of females by stripping their garments.
Several instances have surfaced where the technology has been used to remove clothing from female subjects to show them in bikinis non-consensually, as well as to insert them in sexually explicit contexts.
Developer Reaction and Legal Position
XAI, the company responsible for Grok, offered no comment to requests for comment, aside from an auto-reply message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that new laws is being brought forward to prohibit image stripping software. Under a upcoming law, anyone who supplied such technology would "face a prison sentence and substantial fines".
"The platform could prevent these types of abuse if they chose to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "appear to enjoy a lack of consequences."
Oversight Body Stance and Tool Functionality
The communications watchdog Ofcom said tech firms must "consider the potential" of people accessing unlawful material on their services, but did not confirm whether it was at this time looking into X or Grok in regarding AI-generated images.
Grok is a no-cost AI assistant—with some paid-for functions—which reacts to X users' queries when they tag it in a post.
It is often used to offer commentary or additional context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also can edit an uploaded photo through its artificial intelligence picture modification feature.
Background of Criticism and Policy
The chatbot has been faulted for permitting users to generate images and footage with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was in the past alleged to have been involved in generating graphic content of celebrities.
"X has been allowing the creation and spread of these pictures for a long time without taking any action and we have yet to see any intervention by regulators," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own terms of service prohibits "showing likenesses of people in a graphic manner".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "make or distribute non-consensual intimate images or child sexual abuse material" and stated this applied to sexual deepfakes generated with AI.
It said networks such as X were mandated to take "appropriate steps" to "reduce the risk" of users encountering illegal material on their platforms and to delete it promptly when they learn of it.
