AI Chatbot Grok Under Fire for Inappropriate Images

Elon Musk's AI chatbot, Grok, has sparked global outrage. Governments worldwide are investigating after it generated explicit images, including those of minors. This has put the platform under intense scrutiny. Grok has taken some steps to address the issue. It has restricted image generation to paying subscribers. This move comes after reports of the chatbot producing sexually explicit content. The company claims to be fixing the safeguards that allowed this to happen. Elon Musk has also weighed in on the matter. He stated that anyone using Grok to create illegal content would face consequences. This is similar to the penalties for uploading illegal content directly. The European Commission has extended its retention order. This order requires X to keep all internal documents related to Grok until the end of 2026. The concern is over the generation of explicit images. In the UK, Ofcom has made urgent contact with X and xAI. They are assessing whether the service meets its legal duties under the UK's Online Safety Act. France has taken action as well. Government ministers referred explicit content to prosecutors. They also alerted the French media regulator, Arcom, to check compliance with the EU's Digital Services Act.Germany's media minister has called for legal steps. He believes EU rules can tackle this issue and prevent the "industrialisation of sexual harassment. " Italy's data protection authority has warned about privacy violations. Creating deepfake images without consent could be a serious offense. In Sweden, political leaders condemned the generation of explicit content. This included images involving the country's deputy prime minister. India's IT Ministry has sent a formal notice to X. They are investigating the creation and sharing of obscene images. X has been directed to take down the content and report back within 72 hours. Malaysia's communications regulator is also taking action. They plan to summon X and investigate the misuse of Grok. This could involve offenses under Malaysia's Communications and Multimedia Act. In Australia, the eSafety regulator is looking into the issue. They are assessing adult material under their image-based abuse scheme. However, they noted that current child-related examples do not meet the legal threshold for child sexual abuse material.