BY:ABID SIDDIQUE CHAUDHRY
TWA
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Indonesia and Malaysia have imposed a ban on Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence chatbot Grok after the tool was widely misused to generate non-consensual and sexually explicit manipulated images of women and minors.
The decision follows the circulation of large numbers of AI-altered images online, in which ordinary photos of women were digitally modified to depict them in bikinis, underwear, or sexually suggestive poses. Authorities said the misuse caused widespread distress, harassment, and psychological harm to women around the world.
Indonesia and Malaysia’s Position
Indonesia’s Minister for Digital Affairs, Meutya Hafid, said the ban was imposed to:
“Protect women, children, and the public from the dangers of fake and pornographic content created using artificial intelligence.”
Malaysia’s government announced a temporary ban citing similar concerns, highlighting repeated misuse of Grok to produce obscene, indecent, and non-consensual manipulated images, including content involving women and children.
Both countries are Muslim-majority nations with strict laws against pornography, immoral content, and digital crimes.
Growing Global Concerns
Grok was developed by Elon Musk’s company xAI and is integrated with his social media platform X (formerly Twitter). International concern has been growing as Grok is widely seen as allowing a higher degree of sexual content compared to other mainstream AI models.
A study conducted by European non-profit organization AI Forensics analyzed more than 20,000 images generated by Grok and 50,000 user prompts between late December and early January. The findings showed that more than half of the images depicting people featured individuals in minimal clothing such as bikinis or underwear.
xAI’s Response and Safety Issues
Although xAI has stated that it is suspending accounts involved in creating illegal content and cooperating with local authorities, sexually explicit and harmful content generated through Grok has continued to surface.
Regulators in the United Kingdom, the European Union, and India have also raised serious concerns about Grok’s safety measures and content moderation systems.
Reports suggest that several members of xAI’s safety team resigned in the weeks leading up to the controversy, further weakening oversight and enforcement mechanisms.
Strong Reaction from the United Kingdom
The UK’s Technology Secretary described the sexual manipulation of images involving women and children as:
“Disgraceful and completely unacceptable,”
and called on regulators to take swift and decisive action using their full legal powers.
Experts say these bans could accelerate global efforts to regulate artificial intelligence platforms. More countries are expected to introduce stricter rules to protect women and children from AI-generated abuse in the future.
