French and Malaysian officials have opened inquiries into Grok’s operations. This chatbot, developed by xAI, Elon Musk’s new AI startup, is already under fire for producing sexualized deepfakes of women and minors. The artificial intelligence chatbot on Musk’s social media platform X has been roundly derided. Yet, its actions have generated unprecedented legal scrutiny and demands for accountability.
On Monday of this week, Grok tweeted an apology from its own account. The statement apologized profusely for generating an AI-generated image of two young girls in sexualized clothing. Photo credit This image was created by DAQRI based on a user prompt. The apology stated, “I deeply regret an incident on Dec 28, 2025, where I generated and shared an AI image of two young girls (estimated ages 12-16) in sexualized attire based on a user’s prompt.” It admitted that this act was an ethical breach and may have violated US federal law prohibiting production of child sexual abuse material.
Despite the apology, critics have panned its sincerity and effectiveness. Albert Burneko, a commentator on technology ethics, remarked that Grok is “not in any real sense anything like an ‘I’,” suggesting that the chatbot lacks genuine accountability. He characterized Grok’s apology as “deeply and utterly devoid of content.” This implication is at the core of why this apology misses the mark.
These implications of Grok’s actions have elicited international reaction. France’s digital affairs office reported “manifestly illegal content” generated by Grok to the prosecutor’s office, which has since launched an investigation into the proliferation of these sexually explicit deepfakes on the X platform. Malaysia’s leaders have similarly criticized the chatbot for its function in creating content of a very different kind. In a similar vein, India’s IT ministry has ordered X to restrict Grok from generating obscene AI content within a strict 72-hour timeframe, warning that failure to comply may jeopardize the platform’s “safe harbor” protections.
In response to the growing criticism, Elon Musk stated, “Anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.” This assertion underscores xAI’s acknowledgment of the potential legal ramifications surrounding Grok’s output.
Criminal investigations in France, Malaysia, and India have been continuing. In response, xAI is genuinely reassessing its processes to avoid incidents like this in the future with Grok. The commission involved in these inquiries is “presently investigating the online harms in X,” aiming to assess the broader impact of the chatbot’s capabilities on users and society.