U.K. to outlaw non-consensual sexualized AI images after Grok scandal

Time reports the United Kingdom plans to bring into force a law criminalizing the creation of non-consensual sexualized images, including those generated via Grok, the chatbot within Elon Musk’s X application.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendal announced in the House of Commons Monday that individuals who create—or seek to create—such content would be committing a criminal offence, and that the government would work to make it illegal for companies to supply tools designed to create these images. The announcement came hours after the communications regulator Ofcom said it will investigate X and the thousands of pornographic images generated by Grok that flooded the app, including sexualized images of what appear to be minors, to determine whether they violate the Online Safety Act.

Kendal said regulators would have government support if they sought to block access to X in the U.K., and she criticized recent platform changes that limited image generation to paid subscribers as insufficient, calling them “insulting to victims” and “monetising abuse.” Meanwhile, several countries including Malaysia and Indonesia have already blocked access to Grok and other governments and regulators have condemned the spread of non-consensual sexual deepfakes.

Key Topics

Politics, Grok, X, Elon Musk, Liz Kendal, Ofcom