Elon Musk shares AI images of Starmer in bikini in row over grim Grok deepfakes

Elon Musk has shared AI-generated images of Sir Keir Starmer in bikinis amid a bitter row with the UK government over Grok, used to create sexualised deepfakes on X

Elon Musk has shared AI-generated images of Sir Keir Starmer in bikinis, as X faces the threat of a possible shutdown in the UK over the creation of deepfake pornography.

The billionaire reposted an X post showing two AI-generated images of the Prime Minister and wrote in the caption: “They just want to suppress free speech.” The response was given to a user who asked why the PM was “so focused” on Grok, X’s AI chatbot, when other AI platforms, including Google’s Gemini and OpenAI’s ChatGPT, also generate images of people in bikinis when prompted.

It comes after regulator Ofcom said it had made “urgent contact” with X following reports that users had used Grok to create non-consensual sexualised images of people, including children. Ofcom added it is undertaking an “expedited assessment” of the chatbot.

READ MORE: UK minister threatens to block X after Grok AI reportedly made sexual images of childrenREAD MORE: Should AI be banned from social media? Take our poll and have your say

Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said she would back a move to block UK access to X for failing to comply with online safety laws, writing on the platform yesterday: “If X does not get a grip, we will act.”

The social media platform limited the use of the image function on Friday to users who pay a monthly fee. However, this only applied to those making requests in reply to other posts and other ways of editing or creating images, including on a separate Grok website, remained open.

A spokesperson for the PM said: “That move… that simply turns an AI feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service.

“It’s not a solution. In fact, it’s insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence. What it does prove is that X can move swiftly when it wants to do so… You heard the Prime Minister yesterday. He was abundantly clear that X needs to act and needs to act now, it is time for X to grip this issue.

“If another media company had billboards in town centres showing unlawful images, it would act immediately to take them down or face public backlash… We must stop these unlawful, abhorrent images being made on Grok. And so we will prioritise action that delivers that.”

Ms Kendall said: “Sexually manipulating images of women and children is despicable and abhorrent. It is an insult and totally unacceptable for Grok to still allow this if you’re willing to pay for it.” She added she expected an update on Ofcom’s next steps “in days, not weeks”.

She added the government plans to ban nudification apps under the Crime and Policing Bill, currently going through Parliament, and that the powers criminalising the creation of intimate images without consent would come into force in the coming weeks.

Meanwhile, Musk insisted on Friday night that the UK government wanted “any excuse for censorship”. He pointed to claims other AI programmes created non-sexualised images of women in bikinis and shared a post from US legislator Anna Paulina Luna threatening to sanction both the PM and the UK if X was blocked in the country.

X previously said: “We take action against illegal content on X, including Child Sexual Abuse Material (CSAM), by removing it, permanently suspending accounts, and working with local governments and law enforcement as necessary.

“Anyone using or prompting Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content. For more information on our policies, please refer to our help pages for our full X Rules and range of enforcement options.”

Grok is a free AI assistant – which also has some paid for premium features – that responds to X users’ prompts when they tag it in a post on the site. It has also experimented with AI image and video editing and generation features, which have previously been blamed for creating celebrity nude deepfakes and “undressing” pictures of women.

It’s illegal under UK law to create or share non-consensual intimate images or child sexual abuse material, including sexual deepfakes created with AI, and individuals who commit criminal offences online can face prosecution by law enforcement.

Under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom can fine businesses up to £18million or 10% of global revenue, pursue criminal action or order payment providers, advertisers and internet service providers to stop working with a site, effectively banning them – though this would require court approval.