Musk says X outcry is ‘excuse for censorship’

Elon Musk said critics of social media site

In response, Ofcom said it was carrying out an urgent X assessment, which was supported by Technology Secretary Liz Kendall.

He described the sexual manipulation of images of women and children as “despicable and disgusting” and added that he expected to see an update from Ofcom “within days”.

X now limits the use of its AI display function to those paying a monthly fee; This change was described by Downing Street as an “insult” to victims of sexual violence.

The BBC has seen several examples of the free AI tool undressing women and placing them in sexual situations without their consent.

Ashley St Clair, the mother of one of Elon Musk’s children, told BBC Newshour that Grok produced sexually explicit photos during her childhood.

The conservative influencer told Grok that her image had been “stripped down” to the point where she appeared “basically naked, bent over double,” even though she told Grok she did not consent to sexualized images.

St Clair, who sued Musk last year to gain custody of her child, accused the social media site of “failing to take adequate measures” to combat illegal content, including images of child sexual abuse. “This can be stopped with a single message to an engineer,” he said.

As of Friday morning, Grok said it was asking users to modify images uploaded to X, saying that “image creation and editing is currently limited to paying subscribers,” adding that users “can subscribe to unlock these features.”

An Ofcom spokesman said: “We contacted urgently [with X] Set a firm deadline for Monday and today [Friday] We received a response to explain themselves.”

“We are currently conducting an expedited assessment as a matter of urgency and will provide further updates shortly.”

Ofcom’s powers under the Online Safety Act include seeking a court order to prevent third parties from helping X raise money or access in the UK if the firm refuses to comply.

Kendall said Ofcom would have the government’s full support if it decided to block X in the UK.

The use of Grok to create non-consensual sexualized images has been condemned by politicians on all sides:

• Prime Minister Sir Keir Starmer called it “disgraceful” and “disgusting”

• Reform UK leader Nigel Farage said it was “appalling on every level” and that X “needs to go further” than the changes it made to Grok on Friday, but added banning the platform would be an attack on free speech.

• The Liberal Democrats have called for access to X to be temporarily restricted in the UK while the social media site is investigated.