Microblogging website X has accepted its mistake and guaranteed it is going to adjust to Indian legal guidelines after the IT Ministry warned the Elon Musk-led social media platform on the Grok AI obscene content material challenge, authorities sources stated on Sunday. This follows a transfer by X in January 2026 to limit Grok’s picture era and modifying options for non-paying customers, reserving the aptitude primarily for paying subscribers, after backlash over the device creating sensible nude pictures of actual individuals.
Round 3,500 items of content material have been blocked, and over 600 accounts deleted, in accordance with sources. The controversy centres on ‘Grok Think about’, a device able to fast picture era. X has accepted its mistake, and stated it is going to adjust to Indian legal guidelines, sources stated, including that in future, the platform won’t enable obscene imagery.
Regulators in different jurisdictions are additionally making use of stress; in January 2026, the European Fee ordered X to protect Grok-related paperwork underneath the Digital Companies Act, whereas UK ministers have thought-about utilizing the On-line Security Act to carry platforms to account.
Earlier, the federal government had requested X for particulars, together with particular motion taken on obscene content material linked to Grok AI, and measures to stop a repeat in future, after it discovered the response submitted by the platform to be insufficient. The IT Ministry had initially issued a discover to an India-based official of X on January 2, 2026, looking for a report on remedial motion inside 72 hours, citing a failure in platform-level safeguards.
In its response after the primary discover was issued to it, X had outlined the strict content material takedown insurance policies it abides by in relation to deceptive posts and people associated to non-consensual sexualised pictures. Nevertheless, X was given prolonged time till early January 2026 to submit a extra complete motion taken report after the preliminary reply was deemed inadequate.
Whereas the reply was lengthy and detailed, it had “missed” key info, together with takedown particulars and particular motion that was taken on the Grok AI obscene content material challenge, and measures to stop it in future. The federal government’s agency stance is backed by authorized precedents, together with a Karnataka Excessive Court docket judgment in 2025 that rejected X’s problem towards the Sahyog portal, affirming the nation’s skill to make use of administrative channels for pressing enforcement underneath the IT Guidelines.
On January 2, the IT Ministry issued a stern warning to X over indecent and sexually-explicit content material being generated via the misuse of AI-based providers like ‘Grok’ and different instruments. The scrutiny comes amidst broader coverage work, together with a late 2025 working paper by the Division for Promotion of Trade and Inside Commerce contemplating obligatory licensing for coaching AI methods on copyrighted content material.
X’s ‘Security’ deal with, final Sunday, stated it takes motion towards unlawful content material on its platform, together with Little one Sexual Abuse Materials (CSAM), by eradicating it, completely suspending accounts, and dealing with native governments and regulation enforcement as needed.
“Anybody utilizing or prompting Grok to make unlawful content material will endure the identical penalties as in the event that they add unlawful content material,” X had stated, echoing the stance taken by Musk on unlawful content material. Musk has maintained that AI instruments are impartial, arguing that customers who intentionally produce unlawful materials ought to face penalties.
(With inputs from PTI)
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