UK data watchdog quizzes Elon Musk's X over Grok AI

(Sharecast News) - Britain's data protection watchdog contacted Elon Musk's social media platform X and its artificial intelligence subsidiary xAI on Wednesday, after reports raised serious concerns about content generated by the platform's Grok AI tool, including the handling of personal data and the creation of harmful imagery. The Information Commissioner's Office said it had written to X and xAI to seek clarity on what measures were in place to comply with UK data protection law and safeguard users' rights.

A spokesperson said people had a right to use social media knowing their personal data was being handled lawfully and with respect, adding that the regulator would quickly assess whether further action was required once it had reviewed the companies' response.

The intervention followed mounting scrutiny of Grok, X's built-in AI chatbot, after reports that its image-generation and editing features were used to produce explicit material, including content depicting women and children.

The concerns focussed on whether personal images and data were being processed appropriately, and whether safeguards are sufficient to prevent abuse.

Regulators in Europe had also stepped up pressure.

The European Commission condemned the spread of what it described as "appalling" and illegal child-like deepfakes generated using Grok, while French prosecutors have expanded an investigation into X to include allegations that the tool was used to generate and distribute child sexual abuse material.

EU officials said they were examining the issue seriously, stressing that such content had no place in Europe.

Grok's developer had acknowledged problems.

The chatbot admitted to "lapses in safeguards" and said it was urgently fixing them, stating that child sexual abuse material is illegal and prohibited.

AI safety experts, however, said they had warned months earlier that the technology could be misused in this way if stronger controls were not implemented.

X, which Musk acquired in 2022, was already under investigation in the European Union under the Digital Services Act and was fined by Brussels in December for breaches of advertising transparency and user verification rules.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.