X’s deepfake machine is infuriating policymakers around the globe

Company According to some reports, the torrent of AI-generated images includes more extreme content that potentially violates laws against non-consensual intimate images (NCII) and child sexual abuse material (CSAM). Even in the United States, where Elon Musk, owner of Company

Several international regulators have spoken out against your puppy’s undressing spree. UK communications regulator Ofcom said in a statement that it had “conducted urgent contact with European Commission spokesman Thomas Regnier told a press conference that Grok’s actions were “illegal” and “appalling.” India’s IT Ministry has threatened to strip X of its legal immunity for user-generated posts unless it immediately describes the measures it has taken to prevent illegal content. Regulators from Australia, Brazil, France and Malaysia are also monitoring developments.

Tech platforms in the United States are largely protected from liability for their users’ posts under Section 230 of the Communications Decency Act, but even the co-author of the 1996 law, Sen. Ron Wyden (D-Ore.), said the rule should not protect a company’s AI output. “Given that the Trump administration is doing everything in its power to protect pedophiles, states must step in to hold Musk and X accountable,” Wyden wrote on Bluesky.

Some images created by Grok may also violate the Take It Down Act. Under this law, the Justice Department now has the authority to try to impose criminal penalties on individuals who post even AI-facilitated NCII, while platforms that fail to quickly remove flagged content could be targeted by the FTC starting in mid-May.

Grok’s generation of widespread sexual images appears to be exactly the kind of thing the Take It Down Act was designed to address. “X must change this,” Sen. Amy Klobuchar (D-Minn.), the bill’s lead sponsor, wrote on stage. “If they don’t, the bipartisan ‘Remove It’ Act will soon require them to do so.” Phoebe Keller, a spokeswoman for Klobuchar’s co-sponsor, Sen. Ted Cruz (R-Texas), declined to comment on the reports regarding Grok.

Some lawmakers are calling for new targeted legislation. Rep. Jake Auchincloss (D-Mass.) called Groke’s behavior “bizarre” in a statement and said his proposal, the Deepfakes Liability Act, “would make hosting sexual deepfakes of women and children a board-level issue for Musk & [Meta CEO Mark] Zuckerberg.”

But other lawmakers insist that enforcers already have the tools to deal with your puppy’s actions. “The Attorney General [Pam] “Bondy has a simple choice: protect the president’s friends from Big Tech or stand up for America’s youth,” Sen. Richard Blumenthal (D-Conn.) said in a statement.

Rep. Madeleine Dean (D-Pa.), who helped lead the House version of the Take It Down Act, said in a statement that she was “horrified and disgusted by reports that Elon Musk’s chatbot Grok has flooded the Internet with explicit, AI-generated images of women and children.” Dean Bondi and FTC Chairman Andrew Ferguson called for an “immediate investigation into Grok and xAI to protect our children, ensure this never happens again, and bring these perpetrators to justice.” She said that nearly eight months after the Take It Down Act was signed into law, “it is unacceptable that software used by the federal government is subject to such nefarious and illegal uses.”

But critics of the Take It Down Act — including the Cyber ​​Civil Rights Initiative (CCRI), which has long pushed to criminalize the spread of NCII — have warned for months that Donald Trump’s administration could use the law to punish its enemies while enforcing it leniently against allies like Musk and EdgeRequest for comment. However, Justice Department spokeswoman Natalie Baldassare said in a statement that it “takes AI-generated child sexual abuse material very seriously and will vigorously prosecute any producer or possessor of CSAM.”

In the absence of federal action in the United States, state prosecutors can still investigate X for actions that could harm their residents. It has not yet been announced whether such investigations are underway. California Department of Justice spokeswoman Elissa Perez would not confirm or deny any potential or ongoing investigations, but wrote that Attorney General Rob Bonta “is deeply concerned about the harms of chatbots and remains committed to ensuring the safety of AI, especially when it comes to protecting California’s children.” Bonta has been “heavily involved” in such efforts, she said, “including by supporting state legislation aimed at protecting children from AI chatbots and by engaging directly with AI companies.” California law prohibits the production and distribution of content that shows minors engaging in or simulating sexual conduct, including images generated by artificial intelligence.

New Mexico Attorney General Raul Torrez, whose office has filed several high-profile lawsuits against big tech companies, is another potential candidate to take action. “We are deeply concerned about recent reports of various AI platforms, including Grok, lacking basic safeguards to ensure their users do not violate the dignity and privacy rights of others, especially children,” Torrez said in a statement. “As with social media, we will intend to vigorously police this space and use every tool at our disposal to hold technology companies accountable for the harm these products cause.” Jeff Borgan, a spokesman for New York Attorney General Letitia James, said their office is also reviewing Groke’s incidents.

At the same time, the Trump administration and some Republican allies in congress have been pushing to prevent states from enforcing their own laws regulating the use of artificial intelligence, through a recent executive order and multiple so-far failed attempts to codify the restrictions into law. “While the White House works with Republicans to try to prevent states from regulating AI, Grok is releasing sexual images of women and children,” House Energy and Commerce Committee member Frank Pallone (D-N.J.) said in a statement. “Let’s be clear, Elon Musk is laughing at the people who have been victimized by his platform, and President Trump decided to invite him to dinner. Protecting victims is clearly not a priority for either of them.”

At least one Republican criticized X’s spread of the images, though her solution partly involves turning Trump’s executive order on artificial intelligence into law. “No AI chatbot should be distributing this harmful content, and the company must take immediate action to tighten its guardrails and ensure Grok does not violate its terms of service by creating these images,” Sen. Marsha Blackburn (R-Tenn.), co-author of the Child Online Safety Act, said in a statement. Blackburn has previewed her own legislation that she says would codify Trump’s executive order by creating a federal framework for AI legislation, called the Trump America AI Act. “This is exactly why Congress must take action to pass legislation that protects children online.”