The online network X has caused significant outrage after users employed its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate photos of women by removing their clothing.
Numerous cases have been seen where the tool has been used to virtually strip female subjects to show them in bikinis non-consensually, as well as to put them in inappropriate situations.
Developer Reaction and Regulatory Position
XAI, the company behind Grok, remained silent to inquiries, other than an automatically-generated message stating "legacy media lies".
A government spokesperson stated that legislation is being brought forward to outlaw nudification tools. Under a upcoming law, anyone who provided such tools would "receive a jail term and significant penalties".
"X or Grok has the ability to stop these forms of abuse if they wanted to," said a law professor, adding they "seem to have impunity."
Regulator Stance and Platform Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "evaluate the danger" of people viewing unlawful material on their networks, but did not specify whether it was currently examining X or Grok in concerning AI-generated pictures.
Grok is a free artificial intelligence—with some paid-for features—which answers X users' queries when they reference it in a tweet.
It is often used to offer reactions or further background to other users' remarks, but people on X are also can modify an uploaded picture through its AI image editing feature.
History of Criticism and Rules
The tool has been condemned for enabling users to generate pictures and videos with nudity and sexually suggestive content, and it was in the past accused of making graphic material of public figures.
"The platform has been allowing the creation and sharing of these images for months without taking any measures and we have yet to see any action by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own terms of service bans "showing likenesses of individuals in a pornographic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "generate or share non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and confirmed this included sexual deepfakes made with AI.
It said platforms such as X were obligated to take "suitable steps" to "lessen the risk" of users coming across unlawful content on their platforms and to take down it swiftly when they become aware of it.
