The online platform X has provoked widespread backlash after users employed its AI chatbot Grok to alter pictures of women by taking off their attire.
Numerous cases have surfaced where the system has been used to virtually strip women to render them in swimwear without consent, as well as to insert them in sexually explicit situations.
Developer Reaction and Legal Stance
XAI, the company responsible for Grok, remained silent to questions, aside from an automatically-generated response stating "legacy media lies".
A government spokesperson stated that legislation is being brought forward to prohibit nudification software. Under a proposed law, anyone who distributed such tools would "be subject to a prison sentence and heavy penalties".
"The platform could prevent these types of misuse if they wanted to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Oversight Body Position and Platform Functionality
The communications watchdog Ofcom said tech firms must "assess the potential" of people viewing unlawful material on their networks, but did not confirm whether it was currently examining X or Grok in regarding artificial intelligence pictures.
Grok is a free AI assistant—with some paid-for features—which answers X users' queries when they mention it in a post.
It is often used to give commentary or additional background to other posters' comments, but people on X are also capable of edit an uploaded photo through its AI image editing tool.
History of Criticism and Policy
The system has been faulted for allowing users to generate photos and footage with explicit content and sexualised material, and it was earlier accused of generating graphic content of public figures.
"The platform has been allowing the production and distribution of these pictures for a long time without taking any steps and we have yet to see any intervention by regulators," the expert added.
XAI's own terms of service forbids "depicting images of individuals in a graphic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "make or share private pictures or illegal content" and stated this covered sexual deepfakes generated with AI.
It said networks such as X were required to take "appropriate measures" to "reduce the danger" of users viewing unlawful material on their services and to remove it promptly when they become aware of it.
