India orders Musk’s X to fix Grok over “obscene” AI content

India orders Musk’s X to fix Grok over “obscene” AI content

India has ordered Elon Musk’s X to make fast technical and procedural modifications to its AI chatbot Grok after customers and lawmakers flagged the technology of “obscene” content, including AI-altered photographs of women created utilizing the tool.

On Friday, India’s IT ministry issued the order directing Musk’s X to take corrective action on Grok, including limiting the technology of content involving “nudity, sexualization, sexually explicit, or otherwise unlawful” materials. The ministry also gave the social media platform 72 hours to submit an action-taken report detailing the steps it has taken to stop the internet hosting or dissemination of content deemed “obscene, pornographic, vulgar, indecent, sexually explicit, pedophilic, or otherwise prohibited under law.”

The order, reviewed by TechCrunch, warned that failure to comply might jeopardize X’s “safe harbor” protections — authorized immunity from legal responsibility for user-generated content under Indian regulation.

India’s transfer follows considerations raised by customers who shared examples of Grok being prompted to alter photographs of people — primarily women — to make them seem to be sporting bikinis, prompting a formal grievance from Indian parliamentarian Priyanka Chaturvedi. Separately, current stories flagged situations wherein the AI chatbot generated sexualized photographs involving minors, an issue X acknowledged earlier on Friday was brought on by lapses in safeguards. Those photographs had been later taken down.

However, photographs generated utilizing Grok that made women seem to be sporting bikinis by AI alteration remained accessible on X at the time of publication, TechCrunch discovered.

The latest order comes days after the Indian IT ministry issued a broader advisory on Monday, which was also reviewed by TechCrunch, to social media platforms, reminding them that compliance with local legal guidelines governing obscene and sexually express content is a prerequisite for retaining authorized immunity from legal responsibility for user-generated materials. The advisory urged corporations to strengthen inner safeguards and warned that failure to accomplish that might invite authorized action under India’s IT and legal legal guidelines.

“It is reiterated that non-compliance with the above requirements shall be viewed seriously and may result in strict legal consequences against your platform, its responsible officers and the users on the platform who violate the law, without any further notice,” the order warned.

The Gossip Blogger event

San Francisco
|
October 13-15, 2026

The Indian authorities said non-compliance may lead to action against X under India’s IT regulation and legal statutes.

India, one in all the world’s largest digital markets, has emerged as a vital take a look at case for the way far governments are keen to go in holding platforms chargeable for AI-generated content. Any tightening of enforcement in the nation might have ripple effects for global technology corporations working across a number of jurisdictions.

The order comes as Musk’s X continues to challenge features of India’s content regulation guidelines in courtroom, arguing that federal authorities takedown powers danger overreach, even as the platform has complied with a majority of blocking directives. At the same time, Grok has been more and more utilized by X customers for real-time fact-checking and commentary on news occasions, making its outputs more seen — and more politically delicate — than those of standalone AI instruments.

X and xAI didn’t instantly reply to requests for touch upon the Indian authorities’s order.

Stay informed with the latest headlines that matter. At TheGossipBlogger.com, we ship well timed and credible coverage on breaking news, global occasions, politics, society, and every part in between.

Whether it’s unfolding developments, coverage modifications, or highly effective human-interest tales, our newsroom curates impactful content to maintain you up to date in real time.

From local points to worldwide affairs, we break down complicated tales with readability, context, and a deal with what’s related to you.

Bookmark News and examine in often — because staying informed is the first step towards staying ahead.