Malaysia said Tuesday it will take legal action against Elon Musk’s social media platform X and artificial intelligence company xAI, alleging failure to prevent misuse of the Grok chatbot.
Malaysian authorities said Grok has been used to generate explicit and manipulated images, some involving women and children, in violation of national laws.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission said it issued removal notices to X and xAI earlier in June but received no response. It said that legal proceedings will begin soon and that a lawyer has been appointed.
Malaysia and Indonesia recently blocked access to the chatbot. Both countries cited concerns about Grok Imagine, an image-generation feature that offers a so-called “spicy mode” capable of producing adult content.
Launched in 2023, Grok is free to use on X. The tool drew criticism for creating manipulated or sexualized images, including depictions involving children.
Regulators in the European Union, United Kingdom, and India are also reviewing Grok. On Monday, the U.K. said it plans to criminalize so-called “nudification apps,” and the country’s media regulator opened an investigation into potential violations of child protection laws by Grok.
In response to international criticism, Grok limited image generation and editing last week to paying users. Critics said the move did not fully resolve safety concerns.
Musk and his companies have not commented publicly on the restrictions. xAI has responded to media inquiries with an automated message stating: “Legacy Media Lies.”
