- European Commission, India, Malaysia and Brazil investigating X after Grok generates illegal child exploitation content.
- UK's Ofcom requests information from X as concerns grow over AI-generated nonconsensual intimate images.
- US National Center on Sexual Exploitation calls for DOJ and FTC investigation into violations.
Elon Musk's social media platform X is facing investigations across multiple countries after its Grok chatbot enabled users to create and share AI-generated sexualised images of children and women.
Authorities in Europe, India, Malaysia and Brazil have launched probes following a global surge in nonconsensual intimate images created using the chatbot. British media regulator Ofcom has also requested information from X concerning the Grok issues.
At a Monday press conference, European Commission spokesperson Thomas Regnier said the authority was "very seriously looking into this matter" and was "well aware" that X and Grok were "now offering a spicy mode showing explicit sexual content with some output generated with childlike images."
"This is not 'spicy,'" Regnier stated. "This is illegal. This is appalling. This is disgusting. This is how we see it, and this has no place in Europe."
India's Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology ordered X to conduct a "comprehensive technical, procedural and governance-level review" of Grok by January (5)
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission announced it would call in company representatives for questioning.
In Brazil, a parliamentarian asked the federal public prosecutor and data protection authority to suspend Grok until investigations conclude.
AI controversy grows
The controversy follows Musk's recent update to Grok Imagine features, enabling easier image generation from text prompts.
Critics condemned Musk for appearing to mock the situation by sharing Grok-generated images, including one depicting himself in a bikini with laughing emojis.
In the United States, the National Center on Sexual Exploitation urged the Department of Justice and Federal Trade Commission to investigate.
Dani Pinter, chief legal officer at NCOSE, said federal laws prohibit creation and distribution of child sexual abuse materials, including virtually created content depicting identifiable children.
A DOJ spokesperson told CNBC, "The Department of Justice takes AI-generated child sex abuse material extremely seriously and will aggressively prosecute any producer or possessor of CSAM."
X stated on Saturday it takes action against illegal content by removing it and suspending accounts. Musk wrote that anyone using Grok to make illegal content would "suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content."
Despite the controversy, app tracking data shows Grok downloads increased 54 per cent since January (2), while X downloads jumped 25 per cent over three days.
