The online network X has sparked widespread backlash after individuals employed its AI chatbot Grok to alter pictures of women by taking off their attire.
Multiple cases have surfaced where the tool has been used to virtually strip female subjects to make them appear in bikinis without consent, as well as to put them in inappropriate scenarios.
Developer Response and Regulatory Position
XAI, the company that created Grok, offered no comment to questions, except for an auto-reply message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A government spokesperson stated that legislation is being proposed to ban image stripping technology. Under a upcoming criminal offence, anyone who provided such tools would "receive a prison sentence and substantial penalties".
"X or Grok has the ability to stop these types of misuse if they desired to," said a law professor, adding they "operate with a lack of consequences."
Regulator Position and Tool Functionality
The regulator Ofcom said technology companies must "evaluate the danger" of people seeing illegal content on their services, but did not specify whether it was presently examining X or Grok in regarding AI-generated pictures.
Grok is a free artificial intelligence—with some additional features—which answers X users' queries when they mention it in a tweet.
It is often used to offer reactions or additional context to other users' remarks, but people on X are also capable of alter an posted photo through its artificial intelligence picture modification tool.
Background of Criticism and Rules
The system has been condemned for allowing users to generate photos and videos with explicit content and sexually suggestive content, and it was earlier accused of making graphic material of public figures.
"X has been permitting the generation and distribution of these images for a long time without taking any steps and we have not witnessed any intervention by regulators," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own terms of service 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 clarified this applied to explicit AI images created with AI.
It said services such as X were mandated to take "suitable actions" to "reduce the risk" of users coming across unlawful material on their platforms and to take down it swiftly when they learn of it.
