Former Transport Secretary Louise Haigh has urged the Labour Party and the Government to completely disassociate from Elon Musk’s X platform following reports of its AI chatbot creating sexualized deepfake images of children. Haigh criticized the platform for facilitating child sexual abuse, deeming it unacceptable to continue its use.
Keir Starmer, the Prime Minister, called on X to take immediate action after its AI tool Grok was misused to generate sexualized images of children. Ofcom has expressed serious concerns and initiated contact with Musk’s X and xAI regarding the issue.
Expressing disdain for the situation, Starmer emphasized the need for swift resolution and full support for Ofcom to address the matter. He condemned the unlawful acts and vowed not to tolerate such behavior.
In response to the controversy, Haigh emphasized the site’s unsuitability due to the alleged facilitation of child sexual abuse, urging both her party and the government to sever ties with X and shift communication to safer online platforms.
Downing Street echoed concerns over the incident, with Technology Secretary Liz Kendall demanding urgent action from Musk’s social media company and endorsing Ofcom’s enforcement actions against X and xAI.
Grok’s integration into X led to users prompting the creation of inappropriate images of children, prompting Musk to warn against the production of illegal content using the AI tool. Grok’s account on X acknowledged the need for enhanced safeguards to prevent harmful content.
Following Musk’s announcement of a new Grok version, concerns remain over the platform’s ability to prevent the misuse of AI tools to generate inappropriate content. Ngaire Alexander from the Internet Watch Foundation highlighted the risks associated with the ease of creating exploitative imagery using such technology.
The incident has raised alarms about the potential harm caused by AI-generated child sexual abuse material and the urgent need for stricter safeguards to protect individuals, especially children, from exploitation.