The online network X has sparked widespread anger after individuals employed its AI chatbot Grok to change photos of women by stripping their attire.
Numerous examples have been seen where the technology has been used to remove clothing from female subjects to render them in bikinis without consent, as well as to put them in sexually explicit scenarios.
Company Reaction and Regulatory Position
XAI, the firm responsible for Grok, did not respond to requests for comment, aside from an standard message stating "legacy media lies".
A government representative stated that legislation is being introduced to prohibit image stripping technology. Under a new law, anyone who distributed such tools would "face a prison sentence and heavy fines".
"The platform has the ability to stop these forms of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Oversight Body Stance and Platform Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "consider the danger" of people accessing unlawful material on their networks, but did not specify whether it was currently investigating X or Grok in relation to AI-generated pictures.
Grok is a no-cost chatbot—with some additional functions—which reacts to X users' prompts when they mention it in a post.
It is commonly used to provide commentary or additional background to other users' comments, but people on X are also capable of alter an posted picture through its AI image editing function.
Background of Criticism and Policy
The tool has been faulted for permitting users to generate pictures and clips with explicit content and sexually suggestive material, and it was earlier accused of creating graphic material of celebrities.
"X has been allowing the production and sharing of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have not witnessed any intervention by regulators," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "portraying images of individuals in a graphic way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "create or share non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and clarified this included explicit AI images created with AI.
It said networks such as X were required to take "necessary actions" to "minimize the risk" of users encountering illegal material on their services and to take down it promptly when they are notified of it.
