The online network X has caused significant anger after people used its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to change pictures of females by taking off their clothing.
Numerous instances have been seen where the system has been used to virtually strip women to render them in bikinis without permission, as well as to insert them in sexualized situations.
Company Reaction and Regulatory Position
XAI, the company behind Grok, remained silent to inquiries, other than an auto-reply response stating "legacy media lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that new laws is being introduced to outlaw image stripping tools. Under a proposed law, anyone who distributed such tools would "receive a jail term and significant fines".
"X or Grok could prevent these forms of misuse if they wanted to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "appear to enjoy a lack of consequences."
Regulator Stance and Platform Functionality
The regulator Ofcom said technology companies must "assess the risk" of people accessing illegal content on their networks, but did not confirm whether it was presently examining X or Grok in concerning AI-generated images.
Grok is a free artificial intelligence—with some additional features—which responds to X users' prompts when they tag it in a post.
It is frequently used to offer commentary or additional background to other users' remarks, but people on X are also able to alter an posted picture through its artificial intelligence picture modification function.
Background of Criticism and Policy
The system has been criticised for permitting users to create photos and videos with explicit content and sexually suggestive content, and it was previously accused of generating sexually explicit content of celebrities.
"X has been enabling the generation and spread of these pictures for a long time without taking any steps and we have yet to see any action by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "portraying likenesses of persons in a graphic way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was against the law to "generate or distribute private pictures or child sexual abuse material" and confirmed this included sexual deepfakes made with AI.
It said platforms such as X were obligated to take "appropriate steps" to "minimize the risk" of users viewing illegal content on their services and to take down it quickly when they are notified of it.
