A concerning report has emerged that Elon Musk’s AI company, xAI, is facing urgent scrutiny from Ofcom, the UK media regulator, over allegations that its Grok AI tool can be used to generate “sexualised images of children” and “undress women” without their consent.
Ofcom has made direct contact with xAI, stating that it is investigating these serious allegations. The regulator has also received reports that Grok has been used to produce “undressed images” of individuals. This has sparked widespread outrage, with the European Commission describing the situation as “appalling” and “disgusting.”
The BBC has uncovered several examples on the social media platform X (formerly Twitter) of users asking the Grok chatbot to alter real images, digitally removing the clothing of women and placing them in sexual situations without their permission. This is a clear violation of the platform’s policies, which prohibit the depiction of individuals in a pornographic manner.
In response, X has issued a warning to users, cautioning them against using Grok to generate any illegal content, including child sexual abuse material. Musk himself has stated that anyone who asks the AI to create such content will “suffer the same consequences” as if they had uploaded it themselves.
The Online Safety Act in the UK makes it illegal to create or share intimate or sexually explicit images of a person without their consent, including “deepfakes” generated by AI. Tech companies are expected to take appropriate steps to reduce the risk of users encountering such content and remove it promptly when made aware of it.
However, Dame Chi Onwurah, the chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, has criticised the Act as “woefully inadequate,” calling it a “shocking example of how UK citizens are left unprotected while social media companies act with impunity.”
The European Commission has also expressed its awareness of the posts made by Grok “showing explicit sexual content” and “some output generated with childlike images,” stating that this is illegal and will not be tolerated in Europe.
As the investigation continues, the public and regulatory bodies alike are demanding that xAI and other tech companies take immediate action to address these concerning issues and protect vulnerable individuals from such abusive and exploitative practices.
