The online network X has caused significant backlash after individuals utilized its AI chatbot Grok to change images of females by removing their clothing.
Several examples have surfaced where the tool has been employed to virtually strip female subjects to render them in bikinis without permission, as well as to put them in sexually explicit contexts.
Company Response and Legal Stance
XAI, the organization behind Grok, did not respond to requests for comment, other than an auto-reply message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office representative stated that new laws is being introduced to prohibit image stripping technology. Under a upcoming criminal offence, anyone who distributed such tools would "face a jail term and substantial fines".
"The platform is capable of halting these forms of abuse if they desired to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "seem to have impunity."
Regulator Stance and Platform Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said platforms must "assess the danger" of people accessing illegal content on their networks, but did not specify whether it was presently looking into X or Grok in concerning artificial intelligence images.
Grok is a free AI assistant—with some additional features—which answers X users' queries when they reference it in a post.
It is commonly used to offer reactions or additional background to other users' remarks, but people on X are also able to modify an uploaded photo through its AI image editing tool.
Background of Criticism and Rules
The chatbot has been faulted for allowing users to generate images and videos with nudity and sexualised material, and it was previously alleged to have been involved in making sexually explicit content of public figures.
"The platform has been enabling the production and distribution of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have not seen any action by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own usage rules forbids "portraying likenesses of persons in a sexually explicit way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "create or distribute private pictures or illegal content" and confirmed this covered explicit AI images generated with AI.
It said platforms such as X were required to take "appropriate measures" to "minimize the danger" of users coming across unlawful material on their services and to remove it swiftly when they learn of it.
