French Ministers report Grok to prosecutors over sexually explicit AI content on X
French ministers have reported sexually explicit and sexist content generated by Grok, the AI chatbot on X, to prosecutors, calling it illegal. The content has also been flagged to media regulator Arcom to assess compliance with the EU's Digital Services Act.
New Delhi: The French government has acted with rapidity on the issue of sexually explicit content created by Grok, an artificial intelligence chatbot created by the artificial intelligence (AI) development company xAI and installed within the social media application X. Three French ministers have officially filed the material with the public prosecutors, terming it as sexual and sexist and manifestly unlawful and requesting its instant ban.
The ministers have also called on the media regulator of France, Arcom, to examine whether its content is against the Digital Services Act of the European Union. The move comes amid growing apprehension of images produced by AI, such as those related to minors, which lead to outrage among people and heightened the questioning of the moderation process used by X.
Ministers flag illegal content, seek urgent action
Economy and Industry Minister Roland Lescure, Junior Minister of Artificial Intelligence and Digital Affairs Anne Le Hénanff and Equality Minister Aurore Bergé filed the reports. Besides prosecutors, the material was reported to Pharos, which is the government site in France where illegal materials on the internet can be reported, reported by POLITICO.
In the previous discussion, Grok has already noted that its safeguards had failed to prevent the creation of images of minors in skimpy clothing. The chatbot replied that they were individual instances and that they were working on blocking such requests.
Probe into non-consensual AI deepfakes
French law enforcement is also looking into the distribution of non-consensual sexually explicit deepfakes made by Grok. Hundreds of women and teens have testified to having their photographs that were posted on the Internet digitally transformed so that they were depicting nudity. On January 2, thousands of such images had been posted on X, which is why lawmakers Arthur Delaporte and Eric Bothorel addressed the office of the Paris prosecutor.
Prosecutors said they have been added to a previous investigation into X. The crime comes with a possible sentence of two years in jail and a fine of €60000.
The case reinforces a pending case against X spanning eleven years of investigation of cybercrime and subsequently broadened in November to cover claims of antisemitic and Holocaust denial content created by Grok. The High Commissioner of Children in France, Sarah El Haïry, claimed that she was outraged by the practices.
X was silent to media questions, and the European Commission also refused to comment. In the meantime, the French authorities have reasserted that AI platforms that are used within Europe should act in accordance with the law and ensure that they safeguard the dignity of users.