Online safety regulator Ofcom has begun a formal investigation into X under the UK’s Online Safety Act, following what is being regarded as misuse of the Grok AI chatbot.

The regulator said it was responding to what it says is deeply concerning reports of the chatbot account on X being used to create and share undressed images of people – which may amount to intimate image abuse or pornography – and sexualised images of children that may amount to child sexual abuse material.

The Grok unleashed study of online images from AI Forensics, based on 50,000 tweets mentioning Grok, published between 25 December 2025, and 1 January 2026, found that over half (53%) contained individuals in “minimal attire”.

The researcher, Paul Bouchaud, reported that 81% of these images were individuals presenting as women, and 2% depicted persons appearing to be 18 years old or younger, as determined by Google’s Gemini vision model.

The study also found that 6% of the generated images depicted public figures identified by Gemini. In the report, Bouchaud said the study identified over 350 personalities depicted by the AI image generator, approximately one-third of whom were identified as political figures. In the report, Bouchaud noted that this suggests there are no apparent guardrails preventing content that could be used for propaganda material and disinformation.

Ofcom said it contacted X on 5 January, giving it until 9 January to explain what steps it has taken to comply with its duties to protect users in the UK.

Following the company’s response, Ofcom said it has decided to open a formal investigation to establish whether X has failed to comply with its legal obligations under the Online Safety Act.

Among the areas of investigation is an assessment of the risk of people in the UK seeing content that is illegal in the UK, and whether X is taking appropriate steps to prevent people in the UK from seeing “priority“ illegal content such as non-consensual intimate images.

The investigation will also look at how quickly X takes down illegal content when it is made aware of it, and how it is protecting users from a breach of privacy laws. With regards to protecting children, Ofcom said the investigation will also assess the risk the Grok AI service poses to UK children, and the effectiveness of X to use age assurance to protect UK children from seeing pornography.

Commenting on the investigation, Ofcom said: “Reports of Grok being used to create and share illegal non-consensual intimate images and child sexual abuse material on X have been deeply concerning. Platforms must protect people in the UK from content that’s illegal in the UK, and we won’t hesitate to investigate where we suspect companies are failing in their duties, especially where there’s a risk of harm to children.

“We’ll progress this investigation as a matter of the highest priority, while ensuring we follow due process. As the UK’s independent online safety enforcement agency, it’s important we make sure our investigations are legally robust and fairly decided.”

There has been plenty of praise for Grok on CEO Elon Musk’s X feed, which appears to have avoided discussions on the need for guardrails to protect children and people’s privacy. In a post on X, Musk said the UK wants “any excuse for censorship”.

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