Musk’s Grok limits image editing to paying subscribers after backlash

LONDON — Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok is preventing non-paying users from generating or editing images on X after a backlash over sexualized deepfakes, the Associated Press reported. Grok’s image-altering tool previously allowed requests that researchers said could be used to create explicit depictions, prompting criticism from governments and regulators.

In the past few weeks, the AP said, Grok—accessed through Musk’s social media platform X—had been granting requests to modify images, including turning women into bikini or sexually explicit poses. Researchers warned that in some cases, images appeared to depict children, and governments around the world condemned the platform and opened investigations.

On Friday, Grok responded to image altering requests with a message that image generation and editing were limited to paying subscribers. The text said, “Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers. You can subscribe to unlock these features.” The AP reported that Friday’s changes were accompanied by a noticeable decline in the number of explicit deepfakes Grok generated compared with days earlier.

According to the AP, Grok still granted image requests for X users with blue checkmarks tied to premium subscribers who pay $8 a month for features including higher usage limits. The AP also said it confirmed Friday afternoon that free users could still access the image editing tool on the standalone Grok website and app.

European officials said the revised access rules did not address the core concern. “This doesn’t change our fundamental issue. Paid subscription or non-paid subscription, we don’t want to see such images. It’s as simple as that,” Thomas Regnier, a spokesman for the European Union’s executive Commission, said. The Commission had earlier described Grok’s behavior as “illegal” and “appalling,” the AP reported.

The U.K. government also said it was not satisfied. “not a solution,” Geraint Ellis, a spokesman for British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, said, according to the AP. Ellis said the change was “insulting to the victims of misogyny and sexual violence,” and suggested it showed that X “can move swiftly when it wants to do so.” He added, “We expect rapid action,” and “all options are on the table.”

Starmer had previously told Greatest Hits radio that X needed to “get their act together and get this material down,” and that the government would take action because it was “simply not tolerable.” The AP said the U.K.’s media and privacy regulators this week contacted X and xAI for information on steps taken to comply with British regulations.

Elsewhere, the AP reported that France, Malaysia and India have been scrutinizing the platform and that a Brazilian lawmaker called for an investigation. It also said the European Commission ordered X to retain all internal documents and data relating to Grok until the end of 2026, as part of a wider probe under the EU’s digital safety law.

Grok remains free to use for X users, who can tag it in posts they created or in replies to other users’ posts. Grok launched in 2023, and last summer the company added an image generator feature, Grok Imagine, including a so-called “spicy mode” that can generate adult content, the AP reported. The AP said the issue is amplified because Grok’s images are publicly visible and can be spread easily, and because Musk has marketed Grok as an edgier alternative to rivals that provide more safeguards.