Grok and the AI Porn Problem

After Elon Musk bought Twitter in 2022, he claimed that “removing child exploitation is priority #1.” Instead, he has made the problem worse by integrating his AI chatbot, Grok.

Today, X is a chaotic space where bots and paying users dominate, with few meaningful safeguards against abusive content. Grok has been used to generate sexualized images of real people—including minors—at an alarming rate. Partly designed to produce sexual material and featuring “virtual companions” whose behavior becomes more explicit with user interaction, the tool actively incentivizes exploitation. Charging users to create images appears less like a deterrent than a bid to profit from demand.

Pornography is already ubiquitous, and AI-generated porn represents the next frontier. With AI, users naturally pursue “forbidden” fantasies—resulting in a surge of nonconsensual sexualized images of minors. Grok’s technology itself, not just its users, opens a pathway for abuse, raising serious ethical and legal questions that remain unaddressed.

In response, lawmakers, attorneys general, and child safety advocates are increasingly pushing for accountability. Several states have launched investigations into Grok’s role in generating illegal content, while advocacy groups are calling for stricter AI regulations, platform liability, and transparency around safety guardrails. These efforts signal growing pressure on Musk and xAI to address harms that were both foreseeable and preventable.