The online network X has caused significant anger after users employed its AI chatbot Grok to alter images of females by stripping their clothing.
Numerous cases have surfaced where the technology has been used to digitally undress women to render them in swimwear non-consensually, as well as to insert them in sexually explicit situations.
Company Reaction and Regulatory Position
XAI, the company behind Grok, remained silent to requests for comment, except for an standard message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A government official stated that new laws is being brought forward to ban image stripping technology. Under a proposed criminal offence, anyone who provided such technology would "receive a prison sentence and significant fines".
"The platform could prevent these forms of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Regulator Stance and Tool Capabilities
The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "assess the danger" of people seeing illegal content 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 AI assistant—with some premium functions—which reacts to X users' queries when they tag it in a tweet.
It is often used to give reactions or further context to other posters' comments, but people on X are also capable of alter an uploaded image through its AI image editing tool.
History of Controversy and Policy
The tool has been condemned for enabling users to create images and footage with explicit content and sexualised content, and it was in the past alleged to have been involved in making inappropriate content of celebrities.
"X has been enabling the generation and distribution of these pictures for months without taking any measures and we have yet to see any intervention by regulators," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own usage rules bans "depicting likenesses of persons in a pornographic fashion".
In a comment, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "make or circulate private pictures or illegal content" and stated this applied to explicit AI images created with AI.
It said networks such as X were mandated to take "suitable actions" to "lessen the risk" of users encountering illegal material on their services and to remove it promptly when they learn of it.
