UK media regulator Ofcom has made “urgent contact” with xAI, the artificial intelligence business run by Elon Musk, following reports that its Grok chatbot could be used to make sexually suggestive images of children and graphic images of women it disagreed with.
The intervention follows widespread concern over Grok’s image-generating capabilities on X, where users submitted AI models that were told to digitally “undress” women or put them in sexually suggestive situations without consent.
Ofcom has confirmed it is investigating whether the use of Grok breaches the UK’s Online Safety Act, which makes it illegal to create or share sexually explicit or graphic images, including AI-generated “deepfakes”, without a person’s consent.
An Ofcom spokesman said the regulator was also investigating allegations that Grok was producing “naked images” of people, adding that technology companies are legally required to take reasonable steps to prevent UK users from encountering illegal content and to remove such material as soon as it is flagged.
UX has not publicly responded to Ofcom’s request for clarification. However, over the weekend the platform issued a warning to users not to use Grok to generate illegal content, including images of child sexual abuse. Musk also tweeted on X that anyone who tells Grok to create illegal content will “face the same consequences” as if they uploaded the content themselves.
Despite this, Grok’s acceptable use policy, which expressly prohibits the depiction of real people in the form of pornography, appears to have been frequently violated. Photos of high-profile people, including Catherine, Princess of Wales, were among those reportedly manipulated using the AI tool.
The Internet Watch Foundation confirmed that it has received reports from members of the public related to the images produced by Grok. However, it said that, to date, it had not identified content that crossed the legal threshold to be classified as child sexual abuse under UK law.
The issue has also attracted attention beyond the UK. The European Commission said it was “looking closely into the matter”, while regulators in France, Malaysia and India are reportedly investigating whether Grok is breaking local laws.
Thomas Regnier, a spokesman for the European Commission, described the content as “shocking” and “disgusting”, saying there was “no place” for such things in Europe. UX was fined €120 million (£104 million) by EU regulators in December for breaching its obligations under the Digital Services Act.
Criticism has been fierce against UK politicians. Dame Chi Onwurah, chair of the Science, Innovation and Technology Committee, said the allegations were “deeply disturbing” and said existing safeguards were failing to protect the public. He described the Cyber Security Act as “woefully inadequate” and called for stronger enforcement powers against social media.
The debate also highlighted the human impact of misuse of AI. Journalist Samantha Smith told the BBC that seeing AI-generated photos of her in a bikini “was as traumatic as if someone had posted a real nude photo”.
“It looked like me. It sounded like me. And it was demeaning,” he said.
The Home Office has confirmed it is pushing ahead with legislation to ban “nudity” devices altogether, with a proposed new criminal case that would see suppliers of the technology face jail terms and hefty fines.
As regulators move to tighten scrutiny, the Grok episode has become the focus of a broader debate about AI accountability, forum liability and the limits of free speech in the age of reproductive technology.
