Malaysian authorities blocked access to Grok, an artificial intelligence (AI) tool linked to the social network X, due to the generation of “obscene, sexually explicit and manipulated images” by the chatbot, belonging to businessman Elon Musk.
The Malaysian Communications and Multimedia Commission (MCMC) announced in a statement this Sunday (11) that it would immediately restrict access to the platform, without affecting the use of X, used by five million people in the Muslim-majority country.
The measure, similar to that announced by Indonesia on Saturday, is due to the generation of “indecent, extremely offensive and non-consensual images, including content involving women and minors”.
According to the statement, Malaysia had asked X to implement “effective technical and moderation safeguards” to prevent the generation of AI content that violates local legislation, to which Musk’s company responded with user-initiated reporting mechanisms.
This response, according to Malaysian authorities, does not address the root of the problem and is insufficient to prevent harm or ensure legal compliance. Therefore, they opted to temporarily block the chatbot, whose operation is being analyzed in several countries, including the United Kingdom.
The suspensions took effect in Malaysia and Indonesia after Musk restricted Grok’s image-editing features to paying users only on Friday, following days of complaints that he responded to requests from internet users to alter other people’s images and undress them without their consent.
“Anyone who uses Grok to create illegal content will face the same consequences as anyone who posts illegal content,” Musk stated on X.
Grok is a free tool that allows users to upload and edit photos, and responded to user requests to edit images of women and men, showing them in bikinis or without clothes, which generated a wave of complaints and reports.
