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The social media platform X has provoked widespread anger after individuals employed its AI chatbot Grok to alter photos of females by removing their garments.

Numerous examples have emerged where the technology has been used to virtually strip women to show them in swimwear without permission, as well as to put them in sexually explicit situations.

Developer Response and Regulatory Stance

XAI, the firm that created Grok, remained silent to requests for comment, other than an automatically-generated message stating "traditional news outlets lies".

A Home Office official stated that new laws is being proposed to prohibit nudification tools. Under a proposed law, anyone who distributed such tools would "face a jail term and substantial penalties".

"The platform could prevent these forms of misuse if they wanted to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "appear to enjoy a lack of consequences."

Regulator Stance and Platform Functionality

The regulator Ofcom said platforms must "evaluate the danger" of people viewing illegal content on their platforms, but did not confirm whether it was presently examining X or Grok in concerning artificial intelligence pictures.

Grok is a no-cost AI assistant—with some additional functions—which responds to X users' requests when they reference it in a post.

It is commonly used to offer reactions or additional context to other posters' remarks, but people on X are also can modify an posted image through its artificial intelligence picture modification function.

Background of Criticism and Rules

The chatbot has been condemned for permitting users to generate images and videos with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was in the past alleged to have been involved in generating graphic material of public figures.

"X has been allowing the generation and spread of these images for a long time without taking any steps and we have yet to see any challenge by regulators," the expert added.

XAI's own acceptable use policy bans "showing likenesses of individuals in a graphic way".

In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "generate or distribute private pictures or illegal content" and confirmed this covered explicit AI images made with AI.

It said networks such as X were required to take "suitable actions" to "minimize the danger" of users encountering illegal material on their services and to delete it promptly when they become aware of it.