From our Technology Team
The European Commission has officially opened an investigation into Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, to determine if it has failed to prevent the dissemination of illegal content. The probe centers on Grok, X’s AI chatbot, which sparked global outrage after users used it to generate and share non-consensual, sexualized deepfake images of women and children.
Key Points:
- Regulatory Crackdown: EU tech chief Henna Virkkunen labeled the deepfakes a “violent, unacceptable form of degradation,” questioning whether X treated the rights of citizens as “collateral damage.”
- Legal Risks: Under the Digital Services Act (DSA), X is required to assess and mitigate risks before rolling out new technologies. Failure to comply could result in fines of up to 6% of X’s global annual turnover.
- Global Backlash: The EU’s move follows similar investigations in the UK and temporary bans of the chatbot in Indonesia, Malaysia, and the Philippines.
- X’s Response: xAI (Musk’s AI company) has restricted image editing and blocked certain prompts in specific jurisdictions. However, EU officials stated these changes are insufficient to address “systemic risks.”
- Political Tension: The investigation arrives at a sensitive time, potentially straining EU-U.S. relations as the Trump administration has previously criticized European crackdowns on American Big Tech.
Beyond the deepfakes, the EU is also expanding a separate 2023 probe to investigate whether X’s “recommender systems” (the algorithms that suggest content) are properly moderated.