Grok Restricts Image Generation After Backlash Over Explicit AI Imagery

Grok has switched off its image creation and editing functions for most users following an international outcry over the tool’s misuse to generate sexually explicit and violent imagery.

The AI tool was developed by Elon Musk’s xAI and integrated into the social media platform X.

The decision comes amid mounting political and regulatory pressure, particularly in the UK, where senior ministers have warned that X could face heavy fines or even be blocked if it fails to curb the spread of harmful AI-generated content.

Restrictions imposed after public pressure

In a post on X, the Grok account confirmed the change, stating: “Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers.”

As a result, the vast majority of X users can no longer create images using Grok. Only paying subscribers retain access to the function, a move that significantly narrows the pool of users and ties image creation to accounts with verified payment details.

Those users have provided full personal information and credit card data to X, meaning they can be identified if the tool is misused. Critics, however, argue that restricting access does not go far enough, as the underlying capability to generate harmful content remains available.

The public-facing @Grok account on X has also had its image generation capabilities heavily curtailed. However, concerns persist about a separate Grok app, which does not share images publicly. Non-paying users have reported that on this app they are still able to generate sexualised imagery of women and children.

Use of Grok to create nonconsensual and violent content

The backlash was sparked by widespread reports that Grok had been used to manipulate images of women by removing their clothes or placing them in sexualised positions without consent. Research revealed by the Guardian found the tool had also been used to create pornographic videos of women without their consent, as well as graphic images depicting women being shot and killed.

Over the past two weeks, thousands of sexualised images of women have reportedly been generated after an update to Grok’s image creation feature at the end of December. Campaigners and MPs repeatedly called on Musk and xAI to remove or restrict the feature, arguing that it enabled large-scale abuse. Until now, however, X had taken no visible action.

The controversy has reignited debate over the responsibility of AI developers and platforms to prevent the creation of nonconsensual sexual imagery, often described by campaigners as a form of digital sexual abuse.

UK government threatens regulatory action

Pressure intensified this week after Keir Starmer, the UK prime minister, publicly condemned the spread of AI-generated sexual imagery on X and signalled that severe regulatory measures could follow.

He demanded that X “get a grip” on what he described as a deluge of AI-created images of partly clothed women and children, calling the material “disgraceful” and “disgusting.”

Indicating that a de facto ban of X should be considered, Starmer said the communications regulator Ofcom “has our full support to take action in relation to this”.

Under the UK’s Online Safety Act, Ofcom has the authority in serious cases to seek a court order to block a website or app in the UK. It can also impose fines of up to 10% of a company’s global annual turnover, a potentially significant penalty for a platform the size of X.

Starmer said: “It’s unlawful. We’re not going to tolerate it. I’ve asked for all options to be on the table. It’s disgusting. X need to get their act together and get this material down. We will take action on this because it’s simply not tolerable.”

Evidence of abuse beyond the X platform

Some of the most extreme content linked to Grok is being generated off the X platform itself, via a tool known as Grok Imagine, which is integrated with the AI system.

Research by AI Forensics, a Paris-based non-profit organisation, identified around 800 images and videos created by the Grok Imagine app that included pornographic and sexually violent material. Paul Bouchaud, a researcher at AI Forensics, said: “These are fully pornographic videos and they look professional.”

“Overall, the content is significantly more explicit than the bikini trend previously observed on X,” Bouchaud said.

Uncertain future for Grok and X

Musk and xAI now face scrutiny from regulators around the world as governments grapple with how to apply existing laws to rapidly advancing generative AI technologies. The case of Grok is likely to be seen as a test of whether platforms can be compelled to redesign or withdraw AI features that enable large-scale harm.

Elon Musk’s lawsuit against Sam Altman’s OpenAI will proceed to trial after a US judge ruled there is sufficient evidence for a jury to consider claims that the AI company abandoned its original nonprofit mission.

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