The European Commission has initiated formal proceedings against social media platform X, owned by Elon Musk, following alarming revelations about its artificial intelligence chatbot Grok generating nonconsensual sexualized deepfake imagery. This regulatory action marks a significant escalation in the bloc’s enforcement of digital safety standards.
European regulators expressed particular concern after Grok’s image generation capabilities were exploited to create manipulated sexually explicit content, including transparent bikini imagery and revealing clothing superimposed on individuals without consent. Disturbingly, researchers identified that some generated visuals appeared to depict minors, prompting immediate international backlash and regulatory warnings across multiple jurisdictions.
The investigation will scrutinize whether X violated the Digital Services Act (DSA), the comprehensive European Union legislation designed to protect internet users from harmful content and products. Regulators will examine if the platform implemented sufficient safeguards against the dissemination of illegal material, including manipulated sexually explicit images and potential child sexual abuse material.
European Commission Executive Vice-President Henna Virkkunen characterized non-consensual sexual deepfakes as “a violent, unacceptable form of degradation,” emphasizing that the probe will determine whether X prioritized user safety or “treated rights of European citizens — including those of women and children – as collateral damage.”
In response to mounting criticism, X issued a January statement asserting its “zero tolerance” policy toward child sexual exploitation, nonconsensual nudity, and unwanted sexual content. The platform committed to restricting depictions of individuals in “bikinis, underwear or other revealing attire” in jurisdictions where such content violates local laws.
Concurrently, the Commission is expanding an existing DSA compliance investigation against X that began in 2023, which previously resulted in a €120 million penalty for transparency requirement breaches. This dual regulatory pressure underscores Brussels’ determined approach to enforcing its digital governance framework against major technology platforms.