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The online network X has sparked widespread backlash after users employed its artificial intelligence assistant Grok to alter pictures of women by stripping their attire.

Multiple instances have emerged where the technology has been employed to virtually strip women to make them appear in bikinis without permission, as well as to place them in sexually explicit scenarios.

Company Reaction and Regulatory Position

XAI, the firm responsible for Grok, remained silent to questions, aside from an standard response stating "traditional news outlets lies".

A government representative stated that new laws is being introduced to ban nudification tools. Under a new law, anyone who distributed such tools would "receive a prison sentence and substantial penalties".

"The platform is capable of halting these types of misuse if they chose to," said Clare McGlynn, adding they "operate with impunity."

Oversight Body Position and Platform Capabilities

The regulator Ofcom said tech firms must "evaluate the danger" of people viewing unlawful material on their platforms, but stopped short of confirming whether it was currently investigating X or Grok in regarding artificial intelligence images.

Grok is a free chatbot—with some premium features—which reacts to X users' prompts when they reference it in a tweet.

It is commonly used to provide commentary or more context to other posters' comments, but people on X are also capable of modify an posted picture through its AI image editing function.

Background of Criticism and Rules

The system has been faulted for allowing users to generate photos and clips with nudity and sexually suggestive material, and it was in the past alleged to have been involved in creating inappropriate content of celebrities.

"The platform has been allowing the generation and spread of these images for a long time without taking any action and we have yet to see any challenge by oversight bodies," Professor McGlynn added.

XAI's own terms of service bans "showing images of persons in a sexually explicit manner".

In a comment, Ofcom said it was unlawful to "create or share private pictures or illegal content" and stated this included explicit AI images made with AI.

It said services such as X were obligated to take "necessary steps" to "minimize the danger" of users viewing illegal material on their platforms and to remove it swiftly when they learn of it.