EU looking ‘very seriously’ at taking action against X over Grok

The European Commission is “very seriously” looking into taking action against the social media platform X following an incident in which its artificial intelligence tool Grok was used to create sexual images of a minor, a commission spokesperson confirmed on Monday.

The move follows outcry last week when Grok responded to a user’s prompt to remove clothing from an image of a 14-year-old actress, amid a surge of similar activity in which the tool was used to “undress” images of women and pose them in bikinis.

In the midday media briefing on Monday, the European Commission’s spokesperson for technology, Thomas Regnier, told journalists the commission was “very seriously looking into this matter.”

“We are very well aware of the fact that Grok for X is now offering a ‘spicy mode’ showing explicit sexual content, with some output generated with childlike images. This is not spicy. This is illegal. This is appalling. This is disgusting. This is how we see it, and this has no place in Europe,” Regnier said.

He complained that it was “not the first time that Grok is generating such output” and highlighted how the European Commission previously sent a request for information to X after it spread material undermining recognition of the Holocaust, which is a crime in many European countries.

Last month, the European Commission issued X, which is owned by Elon Musk, with a €120 million ($139 million) fine for breaking the Digital Services Act (DSA), a set of EU laws about transparency and protecting users from scams and disinformation. X itself described the fine as “an unprecedented act of political censorship and an attack on free speech.”

The criticism contributed to a political row brewing between the European Union and the United States over attempts to regulate the platform, which under Musk’s ownership has shed many of the safeguards that were once used to prevent the spread of unlawful and harmful content.

Allies of Musk, including Vice President JD Vance, have repeatedly criticised the EU over its regulations, accusing the bloc’s leadership of “attacking American companies over garbage.” 

A new investigation against the platform has been launched by the Paris Prosecutor’s Office, while the British communications regulator Ofcom said the creation of non-consensual intimate images was a criminal offense in the country.

"We have made urgent contact with X and xAI to understand what steps they have taken to comply with their legal duties to protect users in the UK," Ofcom said. "Based on their response we will undertake a swift assessment to determine whether there are potential compliance issues that warrant investigation."

Regnier, the European Commission spokesperson, told journalists “X is very well aware that we are very serious about DSA enforcement."

"They will remember the fine that they have received from us back in December," he said.