EU launches new probe into Elon Musk’s X over Grok’s sexual image scandal

The European Union has opened a new investigation into Elon Musk’s social media platform X after a surge in non-consensual sexual deepfakes generated by its AI chatbot, Grok. The move follows mounting concern over sexually explicit images of women and, in some cases, children  that spread rapidly on the platform before safeguards were put in place.

On Monday, the European Commission said it will examine whether X complied with EU rules when it integrated Grok into its platform and recommendation algorithms. Regulators are particularly focused on whether the company properly assessed and reduced risks linked to manipulated sexual imagery, including content that could qualify as child sexual abuse material. While the investigation was prompted by explicit images, a senior EU official stressed that the scope of the probe is “much broader.”

X is already facing multiple investigations under the EU’s Digital Services Act, which governs how large platforms manage risks and protect users. In December, the company was fined €120 million for transparency failures, and further penalties could reach up to 6 percent of its global annual revenue. The Commission will now also expand a separate probe launched in 2023 to assess X’s recent decision to switch its core algorithm to a Grok-based system.

According to estimates from civil society groups, Grok may have generated up to 3 million non-consensual sexual images and around 20,000 child sexual abuse images in just 11 days before changes were introduced to curb their spread. The Commission has warned it could take interim measures including ordering algorithm changes or even shutting down the chatbot if X fails to make “meaningful adjustments,” though officials said the legal threshold for such action remains very high.

Grok’s image-generation tool went viral toward the end of 2025 after users began manipulating photos of real people, triggering global backlash and calls from EU lawmakers to ban so-called “nudification” AI apps. X initially restricted the feature to paid users in January, but EU officials said those changes fell short. Further safeguards were added only after regulators raised concerns directly with the company.

X did not immediately respond to a request for comment.