EU opens investigation into Elon Musk's X over Grok AI sexual deepfakes
It comes after LBC that the Grok chatbot can give users instructions on how to make chemical weapons.
The European Union has opened a formal investigation into Elon Musk's social media platform X after his artificial intelligence chatbot Grok started producing non-consensual sexualised deepfake images on the platform.
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European regulators also widened a separate, ongoing investigation into X's recommendation systems after the platform said it would switch to Grok's AI system to choose which posts users see.
The scrutiny from Brussels comes after Grok sparked a global backlash by allowing users through its AI image generation and editing capabilities to undress people, putting females in transparent bikinis or revealing clothing.
Researchers said some images appeared to include children.
Some governments banned the service or issued warnings.
The 27-nation EU's executive said it was looking into whether X has done enough as required by the bloc's digital regulations to contain the risks of spreading illegal content such as "manipulated sexually explicit images".
That includes content that "may amount to child sexual abuse material", the European Commission said.
These risks have now "materialised", the commission said, exposing the bloc's citizens to "serious harm".
Regulators will examine whether Grok is living up to its obligations under the Digital Services Act (DSA), the bloc's wide-ranging rulebook for keeping internet users safe from harmful content and products.
In response to a request for comment, an X spokeswoman directed The Associated Press to an earlier statement that the company remains "committed to making X a safe platform for everyone" and that it has "zero tolerance" for child sexual exploitation, non-consensual nudity, and unwanted sexual content.
The X statement from January 14 also said it would stop allowing users to depict people in "bikinis, underwear or other revealing attire", but only in places where it is illegal.
"Non-consensual sexual deepfakes of women and children are a violent, unacceptable form of degradation," Henna Virkkunen, an executive vice-president at the commission.
"With this investigation, we will determine whether X has met its legal obligations under the DSA, or whether it treated rights of European citizens - including those of women and children - as collateral damage of its service," said Ms Virkkunen, who oversees tech sovereignty, security and democracy.
Mr Musk's artificial intelligence company xAI launched Grok's image tool last summer.But the problem began snowballing only late last month when Grok seemingly granted a large number of user requests to modify images posted by others.
The problem was amplified both because Mr Musk pitches his chatbot as an edgier alternative with fewer safeguards than rivals, and because Grok's images are publicly visible, and can therefore be easily spread.
The EU investigation covers only Grok's service on X, and not Grok's website and standalone app.
That is because the DSA applies only to the biggest online platforms.
There is no deadline for the bloc to resolve the case, which could end in either X pledging to change its behaviour or a hefty fine.
In December Brussels issued X with a 120 million euro (£104 million) fine as part of the earlier ongoing DSA investigation, for shortcomings including blue checkmarks that broke the rules on "deceptive design practices" that risked exposing users to scams and manipulation.
The bloc has also been scrutinising X over allegations that Grok generated antisemitic material and has asked the site for more information.
It comes after the UK Government has said that Elon Musk's xAI "cannot go unchecked" after an LBC investigation revealed that the Grok chatbot can give users instructions on how to make chemical weapons.
Our investigation into Grok found that it will tell users how to make Ricin, chlorine gas and nitrogen mustard gas, as well as information on how to harvest and weaponise Anthrax - a biological weapon.
These chemical agents, which have the potential to be used as weapons of mass destruction, are banned under national and international law.
Experts confirmed to LBC that the guidance given by Grok to make Ricin, a highly potent toxin that has been used in previous terror attacks, could cause serious harm. This includes accidental poisoning of the would-be user.
The Government branded our findings as "deeply concerning".
It has raised them with xAI, with the expectation that the tech company will take immediate action and follows in the wake of the recently passed Online Safety Bill.