The European Union has decided to intervene in the Grok case, the artificial intelligence chatbot integrated into the X platform, accused of having facilitated the creation of non-consensual sexual images of real people. A phenomenon which, according to the Commission, has already exposed European citizens to “serious harm”, especially women and minors.
Brussels thus launched a formal investigation to verify whether X has complied with the obligations set out in the Digital Services Act (DSA), the regulation that requires large digital platforms to evaluate and mitigate the risks associated with their services, especially when they can encourage the spread of illegal or dangerous content.
In the spotlight are the risks linked to the production and circulation of:
According to the Commission, X may not have carried out a prior assessment of the specific risks related to Grok before activating features that significantly changed the overall risk profile of the platform. A mandatory step foreseen by the DSA, especially when tools capable of generating sensitive content on a large scale are introduced.
If the violations were confirmed, Elon Musk’s company could be fined with one fine of up to 6% of global annual turnover.
The numbers make the picture even more serious. According to a New York Times analysis, in just nine days, starting in late December, Grok would have generated approx 1.8 million of sexualized images of women. A volume that gives a measure of the scope of the problem and the speed with which AI can produce harmful content, without consent and without effective control.
Sexual deepfakes of women and children are a violent and unacceptable form of degradation. We will establish whether
In essence, Europe now wants to understand whether the protection of people has been sacrificed in the name of the speed of technological development and engagement.
It’s not just the European Union that is taking action: in recent months, regulatory actions against Grok have also been initiated by the United Kingdom, Australia, Canada, Japan, India, Malaysia, Indonesia, the Philippines, Ireland and France. An increasingly broad international front that signals that the problem is not marginal, but structural.
Already at the beginning of January, Brussels had ordered X to preserve all internal documents and data relating to Grok, calling the images that emerged “horrific” and “disgusting”. From there, national investigations and political pressure multiplied.
Beyond individual cases, the problem is deeper: generative AI is entering our lives without solid barriers, without truly applied rules, and often without a real assessment of the impact on human rights. And when a system is capable of producing millions of sexualized images in a few days, the risk is already a reality.
The European investigation into Grok marks a key step. It’s not just about a platform or a chatbot, but the principle that technology cannot grow by sacrificing the safety of the most vulnerable people.
