The online network X has caused major outrage after people employed its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to alter pictures of women by stripping their garments.
Several examples have surfaced where the technology has been employed to virtually strip female subjects to make them appear in bikinis without permission, as well as to insert them in sexually explicit scenarios.
Company Response and Legal Position
XAI, the organization that created Grok, did not respond to requests for comment, aside from an automatically-generated response stating "traditional news outlets lies".
A government spokesperson stated that legislation is being brought forward to outlaw nudification technology. Under a new criminal offence, anyone who supplied such tools would "face a prison sentence and significant fines".
"The platform has the ability to stop these types of abuse if they chose to," said a law professor, adding they "appear to enjoy a lack of consequences."
Oversight Body Position and Tool Capabilities
The communications watchdog Ofcom said technology companies must "consider the danger" of people seeing unlawful material on their networks, but stopped short of confirming whether it was at this time examining X or Grok in regarding artificial intelligence images.
Grok is a no-cost artificial intelligence—with some premium functions—which responds to X users' queries when they mention it in a tweet.
It is commonly used to provide reactions or additional background to other users' comments, but people on X are also can modify an posted image through its AI image editing tool.
History of Controversy and Rules
The system has been condemned for permitting users to create pictures and clips with nudity and sexually suggestive content, and it was earlier accused of making inappropriate content of public figures.
"The platform has been permitting the creation and distribution of these images for a long time without taking any steps and we have yet to see any intervention by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.
XAI's own usage rules forbids "showing likenesses of persons in a graphic way".
In a statement, Ofcom said it was illegal to "make or distribute non-consensual intimate images or illegal content" and confirmed this included explicit AI images generated with AI.
It said services such as X were mandated to take "appropriate actions" to "reduce the risk" of users coming across illegal material on their services and to delete it quickly when they learn of it.
