Elon Musk's online platform X has provoked significant outrage after users utilized its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to manipulate images of women by taking off their attire.
Numerous cases have been seen where the tool has been used to digitally undress female subjects to show them in bikinis without consent, as well as to put them in sexualized situations.
Developer Response and Regulatory Position
XAI, the organization responsible for Grok, offered no comment to requests for comment, aside from an standard response stating "legacy media lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that new laws is being brought forward to outlaw nudification tools. Under a upcoming law, anyone who provided such tools would "face a jail term and heavy penalties".
"X or Grok is capable of halting these forms of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "operate with impunity."
Regulator Position and Tool Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said platforms must "evaluate the potential" of people seeing illegal content on their services, but did not confirm whether it was currently examining X or Grok in concerning AI-generated images.
Grok is a free artificial intelligence—with some paid-for features—which responds to X users' requests when they reference it in a message.
It is frequently used to provide reactions or additional background to other users' comments, but people on X are also capable of edit an posted photo through its AI image editing tool.
Background of Controversy and Rules
The chatbot has been criticised for permitting users to create pictures and footage with explicit content and sexually suggestive content, and it was earlier alleged to have been involved in making inappropriate material of public figures.
"The platform has been permitting the generation and distribution of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have not witnessed any action by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "showing likenesses of persons in a pornographic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "make or circulate deepfakes or illegal content" and confirmed this covered sexual deepfakes made with AI.
It said networks such as X were required to take "necessary steps" to "lessen the risk" of users encountering illegal material on their services and to remove it swiftly when they learn of it.
