Overview:
Users can't make "images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis, underwear."
Elon Musk’s Memphis-based Grok AI platform now says it blocks the ability of users to create sexual images of people after weeks of global pressure and a civil suit from the mother of one of Elon Musk’s children.
Grok allowed users to upload images of real people, including children, and use its AI to undress them or place them in sexualized positions. xAI later restricted the image-generation tool to only paid subscribers.
The feature got Grok temporarily blocked in Indonesia and Malaysia and prompted investigations by officials in the United Kingdom and India. By last week’s end Grok was also under scrutiny by authorities in Canada and Japan.
California Attorney General Rob Bonta announced a formal investigation last week into the “proliferation of nonconsensual sexually explicit material produced using Grok.” As of press time, it was the only U.S.-based investigation of the matter.
“The avalanche of reports detailing the non-consensual, sexually explicit material that xAI has produced and posted online in recent weeks is shocking,” Bonta said in a statement. “This material, which depicts women and children in nude and sexually explicit situations, has been used to harass people across the internet.”
In response to the backlash, Musk said recently, according to Reuters, that anyone using Grok to create illegal content would face the same consequences as uploading such material directly. When other news agencies reached out to the company last week, they widely reported that the only response from X was a message that read “legacy media lies.”
However, X shut down the capability for Grok last week. The company also issued a statement on X that has since been removed. The quote below is from reports from The Associated Press and Reuters.
“We have implemented technological measures to prevent the Grok account from allowing the editing of images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis, underwear and other revealing attire,” X said, according to reports. “This restriction applies to all users, including paid subscribers.”
Ashley St. Clair, a conservative influencer and the mother of one of Musk’s children, sued the company in New York this week, alleging that Grok used images of her to generate sexually explicit images.
According to Business Insider, St. Clair alleged X users prompted by Grok to “manipulate images of her, including photos from when she was 14, into graphic sexual content. She alleges some images remained online for more than a week and that her premium X account was later terminated after she complained.”
Last week St. Clair posted to X, “And don’t post pics of urself or family here unless u want twitter to tell u that sexual abuse content from its nazi robot isn’t a violation of its terms of service. Xoxo.”
She wants the court to force X and Grok from making more explicit content.
As of press-time, blocks on Grok had not been lifted in Indonesia and Malaysia, and investigations into the matter by other governments remained open, despite the company claiming it had shut down the sexual-content functionality.
It remains to be seen what the global backlash might be for Grok and its parent company, xAI, but monetary damages could be imposed. If X is found in violation of U.K. law, for example, it could face fines of up £18 million (about $24 million) or 10 percent of qualifying worldwide revenue, whichever is greater. If the company fails to comply, officials there could force advertisers from the site or block access to it altogether.