Unlock the Editor’s Digest for free
Roula Khalaf, Editor of the FT, selects her favourite stories in this weekly newsletter.
Ofcom, Britain’s media regulator, has threatened X’s AI chatbot Grok with a ban or a multimillion-pound fine after launching a formal investigation into sexualised deepfakes of women and children being created on Elon Musk’s platform.
On Monday, the media watchdog raised concerns that the AI chatbot was being used for potential “intimate image abuse” and “child sex abuse material”.
An Ofcom spokesperson said: “Reports of Grok being used to create and share illegal non-consensual intimate images and child sexual abuse material on X have been deeply concerning.
“Platforms must protect people in the UK from content that’s illegal in the UK, and we won’t hesitate to investigate where we suspect companies are failing in their duties, especially where there’s a risk of harm to children.”
Ofcom last week launched a fast-track review into X after Grok was used to generate thousands of sexualised images of women wearing lingerie and bikinis without their consent, as well as extreme images of teenage girls and children.
Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom said that it can apply to the courts to block Musk’s platform, or fine the group either the higher of £18mn or up to a tenth of its global revenues, if it finds that X has not done enough to prevent illegal content from being seen or allowing over-18 material to be seen by children.
The investigation will look at six areas, including whether X has carried out necessary risk assessments, whether it has taken action to take down images swiftly and whether children could have seen the content.
The move comes ahead of a Commons statement by the UK’s technology secretary Liz Kendall on Monday afternoon. Ministers have previously said that the government would support Ofcom’s decision.
Business secretary Peter Kyle said the government would stand behind Ofcom against X, including if the platform was restricted or blocked in the UK.
Kyle told the BBC it was “appalling” that X had not tested Grok properly, given it can manipulate images and its potential impact on women.
“This government and Liz Kendall, the technology secretary, stand fully behind Ofcom in their ability to do this,” Kyle said.
He added: “The fact that I met just yesterday a Jewish woman who has found an image of herself in a bikini outside Auschwitz being generated by AI and put online made me feel sick to my stomach.”
The move to launch a formal investigation is the next step in Ofcom’s regulatory process to gather evidence to make a case against X, but will disappoint some politicians who had wanted more drastic action or the use of emergency powers.
Malaysia and Indonesia became the first countries in the world to block access to Grok at the weekend over concerns that the chatbot could be used to produce pornographic and non-consensual images involving women and children.
The move is likely to spark an angry response from Musk, X’s owner, who has already accused the UK government of trying to suppress free speech, as well as from Donald Trump’s administration.
Sarah Rogers, the US under-secretary for public diplomacy, accused the UK of “contemplating a Russia-style X ban” this weekend.
Last week, X partially restricted the ability to generate images of Grok by free users, but left many outraged that such extreme image manipulation was still available to its paying customers.
UK ministers are also under pressure to remove official communications from the platform.
X has been contacted for comment.
Read the full article here