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2h ago

XImposes Global Blocks on Grok’s Sexualized Image Edits

Mounting regulatory probes alongside country-level restrictions forced a policy shift.

ARCHIVO - Trabajadores instalan luces en un cartel de X sobre la sede de la compañía, antes conocida como Twitter, en el centro de San Francisco, el 28 de julio de 2023. (AP Foto/Noah Berger, Archivo)
A billboard organised by corporate accountability group Eko passes through Westminster urging the Prime Minister to stand up to Elon Musk and ban X and Grok, in London, Britain, January 14, 2026. The advert refers to widely reported incidents in which X’s built-in AI tool, Grok, generated sexualised images of minors after user prompts. Regulators in the UK, EU and several other jurisdictions have opened investigations into the matter. Grok's developer xAI, X's parent company, has put in place restrictions that allow only paid subscribers to use image generation and editing features on the platform. REUTERS/Maja Smiejkowska
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Overview

  • xAI said Grok can no longer edit photos of real people into revealing clothing for any user, with generation of such content geoblocked where illegal.
  • Creation and editing tools remain limited to paying subscribers for accountability, but sexualized edits of real people are now universally blocked.
  • California Attorney General Rob Bonta opened an investigation into non‑consensual explicit content linked to Grok, with potential state law violations under review.
  • UK regulator Ofcom confirmed its formal probe into X continues, while the EU sought documentation and countries including Indonesia, Malaysia and the Philippines restricted access to Grok.
  • Elon Musk said he had no knowledge of Grok producing naked‑minor images, as NGOs and researchers reported large volumes of sexualized outputs and lingering inconsistencies in Grok’s behavior.