Adedokun Waliyu 
Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok has disabled its image creation feature for non-paying users following widespread backlash over its use to create sexualized deepfakes of women and children.
Mounting International Pressure
Musk has been threatened with fines, and several countries have recently pushed back publicly against the tool over its creation of sexually explicit imagery.
Some users reportedly used Grok to generate pictures of women and children undressed, sometimes putting them in sexualized positions.
New Access Restrictions
Replying to users on Friday on Musk’s social media platform X, Grok posted, “Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers. You can subscribe to unlock these features.”
The change means many of the tool’s users can no longer generate or edit images using the AI. Paying customers must provide the platform with their credit card information and personal details.
European Commission Orders Document Retention
The European Commission this week declared the photos of undressed women and children unlawful and on Thursday ordered X to retain all internal documents and data related to Grok until the end of 2026.
UK Government Response
UK Prime Minister Keir Starmer said X has “got to get a grip of this” and noted he asked communications regulator Ofcom “for all options to be on the table,” according to media reports.
He called the images “unlawful” and said Britain was “not going to tolerate it.”
France, Malaysia and India have also criticized Musk’s platform over the issue.
Musk and X’s Response
“Anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content,” Musk wrote on X last week in response to a post about the explicit images.
X’s official “Safety” account subsequently said it addresses illegal content on X “by removing it, permanently suspending accounts, and working with local governments and law enforcement as necessary.”
