Government Investigations Into X's Grok Chatbot Multiply

Days after French police raided X's Paris offices, billionaire Elon Musk's social media platform and artificial intelligence company xAI are now under further investigation by the U.K. Information Commissioner's Office (ICO) in relation to X's Grok AI chatbot.

According to its official report, the ICO is investigating whether Grok's processing of personal data is being done lawfully, in addition to the chatbot’s “potential to produce harmful sexualised image and video content.”

“We have taken this step following reports that Grok has been used to generate non-consensual sexual imagery of individuals, including children,” the statement explains. “The reported creation and circulation of such content raises serious concerns under UK data protection law and presents a risk of significant potential harm to the public.”

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Last month, the Grok X account itself apologized to users for generating and sharing “an AI image of two young girls (estimated ages 12-16) in sexualized attire based on a user's prompt,” with a report by Wired adding that hundreds of thousands of non-consensual nude images were being generated by Grok on X every day.

Immediately, the sexually explicit nonconsensual images captured the attention of governments in India, Indonesia, Europe and Malaysia.

After banning the chatbot in Indonesia, the country's Ministry of Communication and Digital Affairs has “conditionally” lifted its initial ban, but stated on Sunday that Grok could be blocked again if further violations are discovered.

Although X owner Elon Musk responded to Indonesia's ban as politically charged -- citing other AI chatbots that also generate nude images from user-facing prompts -- X limited Grok AI image generation to paying subscribers last week.

However, according to a recent report from The Verge, Grok is still producing nude images in response to photos uploaded by users on X.

During its investigation, the ICO will assess X and xAI's compliance with U.K. data protection law.

According to its report, the ICO has not yet reached a view on whether sufficient evidence exists to show an infringement of the law.

The news of Britain's investigation follows a raid on X's Paris offices by the city prosecutor's cybercrime unit in relation to Grok's alleged unlawful data extraction and complicity in the possession and proliferation of child pornography.

Per France’s investigation into X, both Musk and former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino have been summoned to appear at hearings in April. 

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