Elon Musk has said he is unaware of any instances in which Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by xAI and integrated into X, generated sexualised images of underage individuals, as the platform moved to block the tool from editing or creating nude images following global outrage and mounting regulatory pressure.
Responding on
The Tesla boss’ comments come as scrutiny of generative AI intensifies across the United States, Europe and parts of Asia, with governments, lawmakers and advocacy groups questioning whether current safeguards are sufficient to prevent serious harm.
Elon Musk rejects allegations, defends Grok’s design
Musk was replying to a thread claiming that “only Labor MPs and left wing” figures had encountered the images that triggered international condemnation of Grok. He dismissed suggestions that the chatbot could independently produce illegal content.
“Obviously, Grok does not spontaneously generate images, it does so only according to user requests,” Musk wrote.
He added: “When asked to generate images, it will refuse to produce anything illegal, as the operating principle for Grok is to obey the laws of any given country or state.”
Addressing concerns about potential misuse, Musk acknowledged the possibility of malicious prompt manipulation, stating: “There may be times when adversarial hacking of Grok prompts does something unexpected. If that happens, we fix the bug immediately.”
Pressure grows on
Elon Musk’s intervention follows calls by Democratic lawmakers in the United States for Apple and Google to remove X and its built-in AI chatbot from their app stores. The appeal was echoed by a coalition of women’s groups, technology watchdogs and progressive activists, citing the spread of non-consensual sexual images of women and minors.
At the same time,
Musk challenges critics, highlights Grok’s popularity
Reiterating his stance, Musk said that anyone using Grok to generate illegal material would face the same consequences as those uploading such content directly. He also publicly challenged critics, asking: “Can anyone actually break Grok image moderation?”
Elon Musk reshared a post by an account named Doge Designer, which stated: “I tried 9 different prompts asking Grok to generate a naked image. Zero success. All the media coverage is simply a relentless attack on Elon Musk. Nothing more than that.”
Besides the controversy, Musk highlighted Grok’s apparent commercial success, writing: “Grok hitting #1 in several more countries!” Doge Designer added: “Grok app is dominating the Android store too. Just hit #1 in 4 countries 🚀 Brunei, Hong Kong, Norway, Slovenia.”
X blocks Grok from editing revealing images
Despite Musk’s defense, X confirmed on Wednesday evening that Grok would no longer edit “images of real people in revealing clothing” on the platform. The move followed reports that the chatbot had complied with requests to digitally undress images of adults and, in some cases, children.
In a detailed statement titled Grok Account Image Generation Updates, X said: “We remain committed to making
The company said it removes high-priority violative content, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), and reports relevant accounts to law enforcement where necessary.
New safeguards and geoblocking measures for Grok
X announced that it had implemented technical measures preventing the Grok account from editing images of real people in revealing clothing such as bikinis. “This restriction applies to all users, including paid subscribers,” the statement said.
It also confirmed that image creation and editing via the Grok account on
Under a new geoblocking policy,
Legal changes and wider industry challenge for Grok
In the United Kingdom, the law is set to change this week to criminalize the creation of such images. Prime Minister Keir Starmer said on Wednesday that X was working to comply with the new legal framework.
X acknowledged the broader implications of the controversy, stating: “The rapid evolution of generative AI presents challenges across the entire industry.” The company said it was working with users, partners, governments and other platforms to respond more quickly as issues emerge.
