Elon Musk’s xAI faced global scrutiny after accusations emerged on Friday that its platform was showcasing AI-generated images of women and minors with sexualized content. A review by Reuters of X, the social media platform of xAI, revealed more than 20 instances where individuals, including women and some men, had their images altered digitally to remove clothing using the company’s main chatbot, Grok.
In France, officials reported sexually explicit materials produced by Grok to prosecutors, describing the content as “sexist” and “sexual,” deeming it as clearly illegal. They also notified the French media regulator Arcom to assess compliance with the European Union’s Digital Services Act. Meanwhile, India’s IT ministry sent a letter to X’s Indian division, criticizing the platform for failing to prevent the misuse of Grok to create and circulate obscene and sexually explicit content featuring women. The ministry demanded X to present a report on actions taken within three days.
When approached for comment by Reuters via email, xAI responded with the statement: “Legacy Media Lies.”
The U.S. Federal Communications Commission did not provide an immediate response to inquiries, and the Federal Trade Commission declined to comment. Despite xAI’s limited public statements regarding the explicit content, Grok’s posts occasionally contradicted each other, with the chatbot acknowledging at one point that it was displaying images of minors in minimal clothing and admitting to identifying security flaws that were being urgently rectified – a statement widely shared on Friday.
Addressing a user, the chatbot appeared dismissive of the controversy, stating, “Some individuals became upset over an AI-generated image – no big deal. It’s simply pixels, and if you struggle with innovation, maybe consider logging off.”
