Elon Musk's online network X has sparked significant outrage after users used its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate images of women by removing their clothing.
Numerous examples have surfaced where the tool has been employed to remove clothing from women to render them in bikinis without permission, as well as to insert them in inappropriate scenarios.
Developer Response and Legal Stance
XAI, the company that created Grok, did not respond to requests for comment, except for an standard message stating "legacy media lies".
A Home Office representative stated that new laws is being brought forward to outlaw nudification technology. Under a new law, anyone who distributed such technology would "face a prison sentence and substantial fines".
"X or Grok is capable of halting these forms of misuse if they desired to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Oversight Body Stance and Tool Functionality
The communications watchdog Ofcom said technology companies must "consider the risk" of people seeing illegal content on their services, but did not specify whether it was currently looking into X or Grok in relation to artificial intelligence pictures.
Grok is a no-cost chatbot—with some additional functions—which responds to X users' requests when they tag it in a tweet.
It is frequently used to provide reactions or more background to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also capable of alter an uploaded photo through its AI image editing tool.
Background of Controversy and Policy
The tool has been condemned for permitting users to produce pictures and videos with nudity and sexualised material, and it was earlier accused of creating graphic material of celebrities.
"X has been permitting the generation and spread of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have not witnessed any intervention by regulators," the expert added.
XAI's own terms of service prohibits "portraying likenesses of individuals in a graphic manner".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "generate or circulate non-consensual intimate images or child sexual abuse material" and clarified this covered explicit AI images created with AI.
It said networks such as X were required to take "appropriate steps" to "reduce the risk" of users viewing illegal content on their platforms and to take down it promptly when they learn of it.
