Governments grapple with the flood of non-consensual nudity on X

Over the past two weeks, X has been inundated with AI-manipulated nude photos, generated by chatbot Grok AI. An alarming range of women have been affected by non-consensual nudity, including high-profile models and actresses, as well as news personalities, crime victims and even world leaders.

A paper published by Copyleaks on December 31 estimated that roughly one photo was posted every minute, but subsequent tests found much more than that. A sample collected from January 5 to 6 found 6,700 per hour over a 24-hour period.

But while public figures from around the world have criticized the option to launch the model without safeguards, there are few clear mechanisms for regulators hoping to rein in Elon Musk’s new image manipulation system. The result has become a painful lesson in the limits of technology regulation — and a forward-looking challenge for regulators hoping to make a mark.

Unsurprisingly, the most aggressive action came from the European Commission, which on Thursday ordered xAI to retain all documents related to its Grok chatbot. The move does not necessarily mean the committee has opened a new investigation, but it is a common prelude to such action. It’s especially ominous given recent reports from CNN suggesting that Elon Musk may have personally intervened to prevent safeguards from being placed on images Grok could create.

It’s unclear whether X has made any technical changes to Grok’s model, though the public media tab for Grok’s “Anyone who uses Grok or causes them to create illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they uploaded illegal content,” the X Safety account posted on January 3, echoing an earlier tweet by Elon Musk.

Meanwhile, regulatory bodies around the world have issued stern warnings. The UK’s Ofcom issued a statement on Monday, saying it was in contact with xAI and “will conduct a rapid assessment to determine whether there are potential compliance issues that warrant investigation.” In a radio interview on Thursday, British Prime Minister Keir Starmer described the phenomenon as “disgraceful” and “disgusting,” saying that “Ofcom has our full support to take action in relation to this matter.”

In a post on LinkedIn, Australia’s Cyber ​​Safety Commissioner, Julie Inman-Grant, said her office had received a doubling in complaints related to Grok since late 2025. But Inman-Grant stopped short of taking action against xAI, saying only: “We will use the range of regulatory tools at our disposal to investigate and take appropriate action.”

By far the biggest market threatening action is India, where Grok was the subject of a formal complaint from an MP. In January, Indian telecom regulator MeitY ordered Company X to address the issue and submit an “action taken” report within 72 hours – a deadline that was later extended by 48 hours. While a report was submitted to the regulator on January 7, it is unclear whether MeitY will be satisfied with the response. If not, X could lose its safe haven status in India, a potentially serious restriction on its ability to operate within the country.