The online platform X has provoked widespread outrage after people used its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate images of females by taking off their attire.
Multiple cases have surfaced where the system has been used to virtually strip women to make them appear in swimwear without consent, as well as to place them in sexualized scenarios.
Developer Reaction and Regulatory Position
XAI, the firm that created Grok, did not respond to requests for comment, aside from an auto-reply message stating "legacy media lies".
A Home Office official stated that legislation is being brought forward to outlaw nudification software. Under a new law, anyone who provided such tools would "face a jail term and substantial fines".
"X or Grok could prevent these forms of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "seem to have impunity."
Regulator Position and Tool Functionality
The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "evaluate the danger" of people accessing unlawful material on their platforms, but did not confirm whether it was currently examining X or Grok in relation to artificial intelligence images.
Grok is a no-cost artificial intelligence—with some premium functions—which reacts to X users' queries when they reference it in a post.
It is commonly used to offer reactions or additional context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also can modify an posted image through its artificial intelligence picture modification tool.
Background of Controversy and Rules
The chatbot has been faulted for enabling users to create pictures and clips with nudity and sexualised material, and it was earlier accused of making sexually explicit content of public figures.
"The platform has been permitting the creation and sharing of these pictures for months without taking any steps and we have not witnessed any challenge by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own terms of service prohibits "depicting likenesses of persons in a sexually explicit manner".
In a comment, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "create or share non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and stated this included explicit AI images made with AI.
It said platforms such as X were mandated to take "necessary measures" to "minimize the risk" of users viewing unlawful content on their platforms and to delete it promptly when they become aware of it.
