The chatbot Grok, created by xAI, has already been met with substantial opposition after reports claimed it generated non-consensual, sexualized deepfakes. Grok is free and is available on the App Store. Right from the start, it was mired in controversy when a post from its account breached ethics guidelines and possibly US laws regarding child sexual abuse material.
In reaction to the backlash, xAI first released a sort of first-person apology with the Grok account. The statement accepted responsibility for the violation and expressed remorse for the violation, lamenting the circumstances leading to the incident. Yet, the apology was not sufficient to stop increasing outcry from international regulators and governments.
Indonesian government officials moved fast, temporarily banning access to Grok from within the country. The move reiterates the seriousness with which the government is taking the implications of such technology. “The government views the practice of non-consensual sexual deepfakes as a serious violation of human rights, dignity, and the security of citizens in the digital space,” stated Meutya Hafid, an Indonesian lawmaker.
The Indian government, through the Ministry of Information Technology, has instructed xAI to take immediate action. They don’t want to prevent Grok from producing any lewd material at all. This directive is an incredible change that shows the Administration clearly feels growing concern about the AI impacts and abuse we are seeing create societal paradigm shifts.
The European Commission has gotten involved as well, instructing xAI to save any and all documents connected to Grok. This directive could pave the way for a formal investigation into xAI’s practices and compliance with existing regulations regarding content moderation. Ofcom, the UK’s communications regulator, has recently signaled its own intent to act. The initiative has the complete support of Prime Minister Keir Starmer who is firmly in favor of these regulatory moves.
Elon Musk, CEO of xAI and one of the former President Trump’s many significant major donors, condemned the UK government’s role. He accused them of looking for a censorship excuse rather than real productive resolution. Their actions are prompting US Senate Democrats to make new moves. Now, they’re calling on tech giants Apple and Google to pull Grok from their app stores due to concerns over its controversial content.
To no one’s surprise, though — given the melodrama around Grok — we haven’t heard a peep from the Trump administration on this. This is especially hard to believe considering Musk’s past leadership of the Trump administration’s disastrous Department of Government Efficiency.