David Lammy: JD Vance agrees that sexualised AI images on X are ‘unacceptable’ | JD Vance

David Lammy told the Guardian that US vice-president JD Vance had accepted that it was “completely unacceptable” that platforms such as X were allowing the dissemination of sexualized images of women and children produced by artificial intelligence.

The deputy prime minister said Vance, often known as an AI enthusiast, raised concerns about how the technology was being used to fuel “extreme pornographic filth” online when they met in Washington on Thursday.

The comments come amid a growing trans-Atlantic debate over X’s artificial intelligence chatbot Grok being used to manipulate thousands of women, and sometimes children, into removing their clothes or putting them into sexual positions.

Prime Minister Keir Starmer has warned the social media platform could be blocked in the UK after “illegal” and “disgusting” images emerged.

Supporters of US President Donald Trump, including Congresswoman Anna Paulina Luna, have called for sanctions against the UK if the ban continues. X owner Elon Musk wrote on the platform on Friday that the UK government “wants every excuse for censorship” and called the British government “fascist”.

In an interview with the Guardian, Lammy said he addressed the use of Grok with Vance and found the vice president “sympathetic” to the UK’s stance.

“We discussed Greenland and I brought up the Grok issue with him and the terrible, horrifying situation where this new technology allows for deepfakes and manipulation of images of women and children, which is absolutely disgusting. He agreed with me that it was completely unacceptable,” Lammy said on Friday.

Asked whether Vance sympathized with the UK government’s position on Grok, Lammy said: “I think he recognized the seriousness of how images of women and children could be manipulated in this way and realized how despicable, unacceptable it was, and I sympathized with him about that position. And in fact, we got back in touch today about this very serious issue.”

“He confirmed with me that as of this morning he saw that there were some changes announced by X.”

On Friday, X appeared to have changed Grok’s settings; The chatbot told users that only paid subscribers could ask it to change images.

However, reports suggested that this only applied to those who made requests in response to other posts, and other ways to edit or create images remained open, including a separate Grok website.

Sources at the meeting said Vance also expressed concerns about the use of artificial intelligence technology, adding that it was being used to fuel “filth that includes extreme pornography.”

Technology secretary Liz Kendall said she would support media regulator Ofcom if it decided to ban X if it did not comply with UK law. “Sexual manipulation of women and children is despicable and disgusting,” he said. Media watchdog Ofcom confirmed that the investigation into X would be stepped up.

Musk responded by sharing a post by US legislator Luna threatening to impose sanctions on Keir Starmer and the UK if X was blocked in the country.

Lammy and Vance met at a particularly sensitive time for US-UK relations after Trump repeated his claims against Greenland following the US operation to capture Venezuelan President Nicolás Maduro.

Starmer and other European leaders issued a statement on Tuesday warning that the security of Danish-held territory must be collectively ensured by NATO.

Lammy said he and Vance discussed the war in Ukraine, including “giving the Ukrainians the security guarantees they need” and “the situation unfolding in Venezuela,” as well as tensions over Greenland.

Lammy said international laws and rules were under “tremendous pressure”.

“We are realists and we have to accept that we now live in a multipolar world. It is a world where there is no longer a single superpower and there is no single superpower.” [UN] Security Council. And of course the rule of law is under great pressure. “And it seems to me that we are losing this, the danger is at our own risk,” he said.

Lammy, the former secretary of state, developed a friendship with Vance. Last year, the vice president and his family stayed with his counterpart during the holiday last summer, resulting in an unlicensed fishing trip in Chevening, Kent.

The two men were said to have bonded over their difficult upbringing and faith, with Lammy attending the service in Washington at the vice president’s invitation in March 2025.

Lammy was removed from the Foreign Office in September to become Justice Minister and Deputy Prime Minister following the resignation of Angela Rayner.

As minister responsible for the justice system, Lammy is set to approve sweeping changes that will result in thousands of jury trials being scrapped in British courts. The move put him on a collision course with rebel MPs who criticized the move.

Karl Turner, MP for Kingston upon Hull East, told Times Radio that parliamentary Labor Party (PLP) members were “getting heated” with Starmer and Lammy over policy and said the prime minister “should be ashamed of himself”.

“I have told the Prime Minister that I want to meet him face to face on this one issue and I expect him to instruct Lammy to stop and reconsider,” said Turner, a former criminal lawyer.