Artificial intelligence chatbot Grok received widespread criticism over a feature that lets users generate deepfake pornographic images. There have been investigations in Canada, the United Kingdom, and the United States, as well as service blocks in at least two countries.
Grok’s parent company X responded with a press release announcing new restrictions on the service. One such restriction:
@Grok Account Image Generation Updates (Safety on X,We now geoblock the ability of all users to generate images of real people in bikinis, underwear, and similar attire via the Grok account and in Grok in X in those jurisdictions where it’s illegal.
Here’s how that that statement reads to me:
We’ll prevent users from generating explicit images only where it’s illegal because that might get our service banned outright. But we won’t bother anywhere else because we’re more concerned with our bottom line.
I mean, I get it: the need for market share and profit is what drives capitalism. But that statement is pretty brazen.