The online platform X has sparked significant outrage after individuals utilized its AI chatbot Grok to change pictures of women by stripping their garments.
Multiple instances have been seen where the tool has been used to virtually strip women to make them appear in swimwear non-consensually, as well as to put them in sexually explicit contexts.
Company Reaction and Legal Position
XAI, the company behind Grok, remained silent to questions, except for an standard message stating "legacy media lies".
A government representative stated that legislation is being introduced to prohibit image stripping technology. Under a proposed law, anyone who supplied such technology would "be subject to a jail term and substantial penalties".
"X or Grok is capable of halting these types of misuse if they chose to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "operate with impunity."
Regulator Stance and Tool Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said platforms must "consider the potential" of people viewing illegal content on their networks, but did not specify whether it was at this time investigating X or Grok in concerning artificial intelligence pictures.
Grok is a free AI assistant—with some premium functions—which responds to X users' queries when they tag it in a tweet.
It is often used to offer commentary or more context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also able to alter an posted picture through its AI image editing feature.
Background of Criticism and Rules
The tool has been condemned for permitting users to produce images and videos with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was previously alleged to have been involved in making inappropriate material of public figures.
"The platform has been allowing the creation and distribution of these pictures for a long time without taking any steps and we have not witnessed any action by regulators," the expert added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy prohibits "depicting likenesses of persons in a pornographic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "create or distribute private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and stated this applied to explicit AI images made with AI.
It said platforms such as X were mandated to take "suitable actions" to "reduce the danger" of users encountering unlawful content on their services and to delete it swiftly when they learn of it.
