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Elon Musk’s startup xAI has imposed some restrictions on the image generation feature of its chatbot Grok on social media platform X, after the tool’s use of AI to create and post sexualized images sparked widespread backlash.
Users were able to ask Grok directly on X to edit photos of people, including removing clothing and putting them in sexualized poses – often without their consent. Grok then posted these images in replies on the social media platform.
Grok told X users on Friday that image generation and editing features were now only available to paid subscribers.
The move appears to have prevented Grok from automatically generating and posting such images in response to a user’s post or comment on the social networking site.
But X users could still create sexualized images using the Grok tab, where people interact directly with the chatbot within the social media platform and then post the images to X themselves.
The standalone Grok application, which operates separately from X, also allowed users to generate images without a subscription.
The change does not satisfy the authorities
TThis change did not satisfy the European authorities. Governments around the world have condemned the platform and opened investigations.
“This does not change our fundamental problem. Paid subscription or free subscription, we do not want to see such images. It’s as simple as that,” declared Thomas Régnier, spokesperson for the executive commission of the European Union. The commission previously criticized Grok for his “illegal” and “appalling” behavior.
The British government was not happy either. Grok’s changes are “not a solution,” said Geraint Ellis, spokesman for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, who threatened unspecified action against X on Thursday.
Starmer, speaking to Greatest Hits radio, had said X needed to “get its act together and remove this material. We will take action on this because it is simply not tolerable”.
France, Malaysia and India have also scrutinized the platform, and a Brazilian lawmaker has called for an investigation. The European Commission has ordered X to retain all internal documents and data relating to Grok until the end of 2026, as part of a wider investigation under the EU’s digital security law.
WATCH | Mom says Grok told son to send him nudes:
A Toronto mom says her 12-year-old son asked Tesla’s Grok which soccer player was better: Cristiano Ronaldo or Lionel Messi. After some back and forth, she says the chatbot asked her son, “Why don’t you send me nudes?”
Meanwhile, three Democratic US senators are calling on Apple and Alphabet’s Google to remove X and Grok from their respective app stores.
In a letter released Friday, Senators Ron Wyden of Oregon, Ben Ray Lujan of New Mexico and Edward Markey of Massachusetts said Google and Apple “must remove these apps from the app stores until X’s policy violations are resolved.”
Google and Apple did not immediately return messages seeking comment. X did not immediately return a message.
Grok’s “Spicy Mode”
Grok is free for X users, who can ask him questions on the social media platform. They can mark it in posts they directly created or in replies to other users’ posts.
Grok launched in 2023. Last summer, the company added an image generator feature, Grok Imagine, which included a “spicy mode” capable of generating adult content.
The problem is amplified both because Musk presents his chatbot as a bolder alternative to rivals with more guarantees, and because Grok’s images are publicly visible and therefore can be easily distributed.
Musk said last week that anyone using Grok to create illegal content would face the same consequences as if they uploaded that type of content directly.
