The online network X has provoked significant outrage after users utilized its AI chatbot Grok to change photos of females by removing their garments.
Multiple examples have emerged where the system has been used to remove clothing from female subjects to render them in swimwear without consent, as well as to place them in sexually explicit contexts.
Company Response and Regulatory Stance
XAI, the company that created Grok, remained silent to questions, other than an standard message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office representative stated that new laws is being brought forward to prohibit nudification software. Under a upcoming law, anyone who supplied such tools would "be subject to a jail term and significant penalties".
"X or Grok could prevent these types of misuse if they desired to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "operate with a lack of consequences."
Regulator Position and Tool Capabilities
The communications watchdog Ofcom said technology companies must "evaluate the risk" of people accessing unlawful material on their networks, but did not specify whether it was at this time looking into X or Grok in relation to artificial intelligence pictures.
Grok is a no-cost chatbot—with some premium functions—which answers X users' queries when they reference it in a message.
It is frequently used to offer commentary or additional context to other users' comments, but people on X are also can alter an posted picture through its artificial intelligence picture modification function.
History of Controversy and Policy
The chatbot has been faulted for permitting users to create images and videos with nudity and sexualised content, and it was in the past accused of creating inappropriate material of celebrities.
"X has been permitting the creation and distribution of these images for months without taking any steps and we have not witnessed any intervention by regulators," the expert added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy prohibits "depicting images of persons in a graphic way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "make or share private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and confirmed this applied to explicit AI images generated with AI.
It said services such as X were mandated to take "appropriate steps" to "lessen the danger" of users viewing unlawful content on their platforms and to remove it promptly when they are notified of it.
