The online platform X has provoked major outrage after users utilized its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to alter photos of women by stripping their attire.
Several examples have emerged where the system has been employed to virtually strip female subjects to make them appear in swimwear without permission, as well as to place them in sexually explicit contexts.
Developer Response and Legal Stance
XAI, the firm behind Grok, offered no comment to questions, except for an automatically-generated message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that legislation is being introduced to prohibit image stripping technology. Under a new law, anyone who provided such tools would "be subject to a jail term and substantial penalties".
"X or Grok is capable of halting these forms of abuse if they wanted to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "operate with a lack of consequences."
Oversight Body Position and Platform Functionality
The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "assess the danger" of people seeing illegal content on their networks, but stopped short of confirming whether it was presently looking into X or Grok in regarding artificial intelligence pictures.
Grok is a free chatbot—with some additional functions—which reacts to X users' requests when they tag it in a post.
It is commonly used to offer reactions or more background to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also capable of edit an posted photo through its AI image editing function.
Background of Criticism and Policy
The tool has been faulted for allowing users to produce pictures and clips with nudity and sexualised material, and it was earlier alleged to have been involved in creating graphic material of celebrities.
"The platform has been enabling the production and spread of these pictures for a long time without taking any steps and we have yet to see any intervention by regulators," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "depicting likenesses of people in a graphic fashion".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "make or share private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and stated this covered sexual deepfakes generated with AI.
It said platforms such as X were obligated to take "appropriate actions" to "minimize the risk" of users encountering illegal content on their services and to delete it swiftly when they become aware of it.
