The online network X has caused widespread outrage after users used its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to manipulate images of females by taking off their garments.
Multiple cases have been seen where the technology has been used to remove clothing from women to show them in bikinis without permission, as well as to place them in sexualized scenarios.
Company Response and Legal Position
XAI, the company responsible for Grok, offered no comment to requests for comment, other than an automatically-generated message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office spokesperson stated that legislation is being brought forward to ban image stripping technology. Under a upcoming law, anyone who provided such technology would "be subject to a prison sentence and significant penalties".
"The platform is capable of halting these forms of misuse if they chose to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "appear to enjoy a lack of consequences."
Oversight Body Position and Tool Capabilities
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 investigating X or Grok in relation to AI-generated images.
Grok is a no-cost AI assistant—with some premium functions—which responds to X users' requests when they reference it in a post.
It is frequently used to offer commentary or further context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also capable of modify an posted photo through its artificial intelligence picture modification function.
Background of Criticism and Rules
The tool has been criticised for permitting users to create images and footage with explicit content and sexually suggestive content, and it was in the past alleged to have been involved in making inappropriate material of public figures.
"The platform has been enabling the production and spread of these images for months without taking any action and we have yet to see any intervention by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own usage rules bans "showing images of persons in a sexually explicit way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "create or share deepfakes or child sexual abuse material" and stated this covered explicit AI images generated with AI.
It said networks such as X were obligated to take "necessary steps" to "minimize the danger" of users encountering illegal material on their services and to remove it swiftly when they are notified of it.
