Grok targeted in UK law over sexually-explicit AI image generation — UK will begin prosecuting illegal prompting this week

The British government has just announced it will criminalize creating non-consensual AI-generated images from this week, calling them "weapons of abuse." Sharing deepfakes is already illegal in the UK, but the law to enforce prosecution against those creating/requesting them will go into effect just now. This decision comes on the heels of Grok dishing out sexually explicit imagery of minors on X.

"The Data (Use and Access) Act passed last year made it a criminal offence to create or request the creation of non-consensual intimate images, and today I can announce to the House that this offence will be brought into force this week." — Liz Kendall, Technology Secretary.

Over the past few weeks, the failing guardrails of Elon Musk's AI chatbot have sparked global outrage, prompting the UK's communication watchdog, Ofcom, to launch a formal investigation into the matter. If found guilty, Ofcom holds the power to severely fine Grok — up to 10% of applicable global revenue — along with a court-approved outright ban of the service.

Indonesia and Malaysia have already blocked Grok access in their respective regions, while Musk has criticized Downing Street's intense reaction as fascist and accused the government of censorship, something that Epic Games CEO Tim Sweeney also agrees with. Conversely, Liz Kendall has said, "The content which has circulated on X is vile. It's not just an affront to decent society, it is illegal."

Musk added the ability to generate images using artificial intelligence to Grok last year. While the dedicated Grok app allows you to take these operations private, it's the public-facing image manipulation on X that has lit the fire. Any image uploaded on the platform can be turned explicit with just a simple @Grok request, with the AI chatbot replying with the edited image right there.

Such invasion of privacy would already make heads turn, but it was the fact that Grok failed to even distinguish between adult and children that crossed the line, and freely generated intimate content featuring minors on X. Most recently, a picture of a then 13-year-old Stranger Things actor was tweaked to show them in bikini, pushing the service into criminal territory.

"Anyone using or prompting Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content," said Elon Musk a few days ago, adding that unlawful imagery is taken down immediately in accordance with local authorities. Grok was also pushed behind a paywall with only X Premium subscribers being able to access the service.

Targeting the problem "at its source" shows that both apps and the individuals using them will be held accountable, and that it's a "priority offence" in the Online Safety Act. For now, X and Grok remain up until Ofcom presents its findings. Musk is free to come forward and change policies in the meantime, before a verdict is reached, to potentially ease the regulator's scrutiny.

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