New Delhi: Social media platform X, owned by Elon Musk, has blocked large amounts of content and deleted over 600 accounts from its service after a push from the Government of India over the circulation of obscene material linked to its AI tool, Grok, sources told Hindustan Times.
The move came days after the government gave time to X Corp, a company owned by Elon Musk, to file an action taken report on obscene and sexually explicit content generated by its AI chatbot Grok, the report claims. The official, as per the report, warned X of losing legal protection under the Indian law. The official also added that other platforms would also see similar actions if their AI chatbots didn’t comply.
According to government sources, X blocked more than 3,500 pieces of content flagged as obscene or sexually explicit. The company deleted over 600 user accounts associated with the objectionable material.
These actions were taken in response to a government directive demanding removal of unlawful content and compliance with Indian l
aw.
Earlier on Saturday, Musk had reportedly reacted to an X user’s post, who wrote on Friday, “So what if Grok can put people in bikinis? So can photoshop? So can millions of apps already? This isn’t a new problem, it’s a new tool. If a user does it someone unconsentually, the user should be punished, not the platform.”
Musk retweeted the post stating: “Exactly.”
Government officials had earlier flagged that users were allegedly misusing X’s artificial intelligence services—including Grok and other AI features—to generate and share sexually explicit, derogatory or indecent images and videos, particularly of women, without consent.
X has reportedly acknowledged lapses in its moderation processes and “admitted its mistake,” assuring Indian authorities that it will comply with applicable laws and work to prevent the recurrence of such violations on its platform.
The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) had earlier issued a notice to X, requiring a detailed action taken report within a specified deadline and warning that non-compliance could lead to legal consequences under Indian regulations related to obscenity and online content.
X’s response and subsequent removals come amid broader international scrutiny of Grok and similar AI tools, which have drawn criticism from regulators in several countries over their potential for misuse in creating explicit or harmful imagery.