UK Grok ban live: Government to give update on X deepfake row after Musk lashes out over Ofcom probe

Women say they feel “violated and humiliated” after their “dehumanised” images were created by Grok AI users without their consent.

Evie, 22, who did not want to share her last name, said she was bombarded with more than 100 sexually explicit photos of herself in less than a week; one of them digitally stripped her naked.

“I feel violated,” she said Independent. “I’m very surprised that there are people out there who can do this and that there are so many people who will defend it and make excuses for it even though it’s obviously a massive violation.”

Read Tara Cobham’s full story Here

Malaysia and Indonesia became the first countries to block Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, after authorities said it was misused to create sexually explicit and non-consensual images.

The moves reflect growing global concern for generative AI tools that can produce realistic images, audio and text, while current security measures fail to prevent their misuse.

The Grok chatbot, accessed via Musk’s social media platform X, has been criticized for producing manipulated images, including depictions of women in bikinis or suggestive poses and images featuring children.

X is still “not doing enough to keep its customers safe online”, a government minister has said, amid calls for the government to ban Elon Musk’s social media platform.

Business minister Peter Kyle told BBC Breakfast that inappropriate AI images produced in recent days were “an insult to people’s dignity” and were “making people feel unsafe”.

He said it was “appalling” that X had not properly tested Grok, adding that the government was “fully behind Ofcom” in using its full powers, including effectively banning X.

An important figure in Donald Trump’s administration spoke harshly of Britain’s threats against X, comparing the possible ban to Vladimir Putin’s Russia.

Sarah Rogers, the US undersecretary of state for public diplomacy, said in a series of X-related posts that Britain was “considering a Russia-style X ban to protect against bikini images.”

X owner Elon Musk also pushed back against the threats, claiming the UK government wanted “any excuse for censorship”.

The government will announce its next steps in its fight with X after technology minister Liz Kendall said she would support Ofcom’s decision to ban the social media platform in the UK.

Elon Musk faced public backlash after Grok artificial intelligence was used to create sexually explicit images of women and children.

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall He said: “The sexual manipulation of women and children is despicable and disgusting.