The online platform X has sparked widespread outrage after users utilized its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate photos of women by taking off their garments.
Multiple examples have been seen where the system has been employed to digitally undress women to render them in swimwear without permission, as well as to insert them in sexualized scenarios.
Developer Reaction and Legal Stance
XAI, the company that created Grok, remained silent to requests for comment, except for an automatically-generated message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that new laws is being proposed to ban image stripping technology. Under a upcoming criminal offence, anyone who supplied such tools would "face a prison sentence and heavy penalties".
"X or Grok has the ability to stop these forms of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "operate with impunity."
Regulator Position and Platform Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said platforms must "evaluate the potential" of people viewing illegal content on their networks, but did not specify whether it was at this time looking into X or Grok in regarding AI-generated pictures.
Grok is a free AI assistant—with some additional functions—which responds to X users' requests when they reference it in a post.
It is frequently used to provide commentary or more background to other users' comments, but people on X are also able to modify an uploaded photo through its AI image editing function.
Background of Controversy and Policy
The tool has been faulted for enabling users to produce pictures and footage with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was previously accused of generating graphic material of celebrities.
"X has been allowing the generation and spread of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have not witnessed any intervention by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy prohibits "showing likenesses of people in a pornographic way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "create or circulate non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and confirmed this included explicit AI images created with AI.
It said services such as X were required to take "appropriate steps" to "lessen the danger" of users coming across unlawful material on their services and to delete it quickly when they become aware of it.
