The social media network X has sparked significant anger after individuals utilized its AI chatbot Grok to manipulate photos of females by stripping their clothing.
Several examples have emerged where the system has been employed to virtually strip female subjects to render them in bikinis non-consensually, as well as to insert them in inappropriate situations.
Company Reaction and Legal Position
XAI, the organization behind Grok, remained silent to questions, aside from an standard message stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A Home Office representative stated that new laws is being brought forward to outlaw image stripping technology. Under a upcoming criminal offence, anyone who provided such technology would "be subject to a prison sentence and heavy fines".
"X or Grok has the ability to stop these types of misuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy impunity."
Regulator Position and Platform Functionality
The communications watchdog Ofcom said platforms must "evaluate the danger" of people accessing illegal content on their platforms, but stopped short of confirming whether it was at this time examining X or Grok in relation to artificial intelligence images.
Grok is a free chatbot—with some premium functions—which answers X users' queries when they reference it in a tweet.
It is commonly used to offer reactions or more context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also capable of modify an uploaded image through its artificial intelligence picture modification feature.
History of Criticism and Policy
The chatbot has been faulted for permitting users to produce pictures and clips with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was earlier accused of generating sexually explicit content of public figures.
"X has been enabling the creation and spread of these pictures for a long time without taking any measures and we have not witnessed any challenge by oversight bodies," the expert added.
XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "showing images of persons in a graphic way".
In a comment, Ofcom said it was against the law to "create or circulate non-consensual intimate images or child sexual abuse material" and stated this applied to explicit AI images generated with AI.
It said platforms such as X were mandated to take "necessary actions" to "minimize the danger" of users viewing illegal content on their platforms and to take down it promptly when they become aware of it.
