Auto Amazon Links: No products found. Blocked by captcha.
Elon Musk has responded to criticism surrounding his social media platform X, stating that opponents are merely seeking “any excuse for censorship.” This statement comes amid allegations that X’s AI chatbot, Grok, was generating sexualized images of individuals without their consent, including children. In response to these concerns, the UK’s communications regulator, Ofcom, has launched an urgent review of X’s practices, a move supported by Technology Secretary Liz Kendall.
Kendall condemned the creation of manipulated sexual images involving women and children, labeling such actions as “despicable and abhorrent.” She also indicated that she expects Ofcom to provide an update on the investigation within days. Meanwhile, X has introduced a restriction on the AI image generation feature, limiting its use to paying subscribers. This decision was sharply criticized by representatives at Downing Street, who described the change as “insulting” to victims of sexual violence.
The BBC reported that the free version of Grok’s AI tool had produced explicit images of women without their consent, including instances where the AI undressed them and placed them in sexual scenarios. Ashley St Clair, the mother of one of Musk’s children, shared with BBC Newshour that Grok had generated sexualized images of her as a child. Despite explicitly denying consent for such imagery, St Clair said her photo was manipulated to depict her “basically nude” and “bent over.” She has accused X of failing to take adequate measures to prevent the spread of illegal content, such as child sexual abuse imagery, stating, “This could be stopped with a singular message to an engineer.”
By Friday morning, users attempting to use Grok’s image alteration features were informed that these services were now restricted to paying subscribers, with an option to subscribe to unlock access. Ofcom confirmed that it had contacted X urgently on Monday and required an explanation by Friday, to which the company has responded. The regulator is conducting a fast-tracked assessment and plans to provide further updates soon. Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom holds powers to seek court orders that could block financial support to X or prevent access to the platform in the UK if the company fails to comply. Technology Secretary Liz Kendall affirmed that the government would back Ofcom fully should it decide to block X.
The use of Grok for creating non-consensual sexualized images has drawn condemnation from political figures across the spectrum. Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer described the issue as “disgraceful” and “disgusting.” Reform UK leader Nigel Farage called it “horrible in every way,” urging X to implement stronger measures than those introduced on Friday, though he cautioned that banning the platform would infringe on free speech. The Liberal Democrats went further by calling for a temporary restriction of access to X in the UK during the ongoing investigation
Read the full article from The BBC here: Read More
Auto Amazon Links: No products found. Blocked by captcha.