LONDON: Elon Musk’s startup xAI has restricted the image generation function on its Grok chatbot on social media platform X to paid subscribers, after the tool’s use of AI to create sexualized images sparked a widespread backlash.
The chatbot’s image generation had allowed users on X to edit or create sexualized photos, which Reuters found was used to generate images of women and children in minimal clothing, often without the consent of the individuals depicted.
A torrent of semi-nude images on X led to European lawmakers urging legal action, with German media minister Wolfram Weimer describing them as the “industrialization of sexual harassment” and the European Commission calling them illegal.
Grok told X users on Friday that image generation and editing features were now available only to paying subscribers.
The standalone Grok app, which operates separately from X, still allows users to generate images without a subscription.
