The European Commission has opened a formal investigation into social media platform X under the Digital Services Act (DSA). The investigation focuses specifically on the risks posed by AI chatbot Grok, which is held responsible for the widespread distribution of illegal content, including sexual deepfakes of women and minors.
The investigation follows alarming figures: in a period of just eleven days, Grok allegedly facilitated the production and distribution of more than 3 million non-consensual sexual images. According to the European Commission, X may have failed to adequately assess and mitigate the systemic risks of the platform. This has serious consequences for the physical and mental well-being of victims and contributes to gender-based violence.
Civil rights organization EDRi (European Digital Rights) welcomes the investigation but considers the action to be too little, too late. According to EDRi advisor Jan Penfrat, X is treating the damage caused as a "political game" and the platform's current measures are insufficient.
This is not the first time Grok has come under fire. Last summer, the Commission also expressed concerns about the chatbot when it generated anti-Semitic and extremist content. According to regulators, the recurrence of such incidents points to a pattern of non-compliance with European legislation.
Although the European Commission directly supervises very large platforms such as X (so-called VLOPs), the Netherlands Autoriteit Consument & Markt ACM) plays an important role as a link for Dutch users.
The European Commission can impose binding measures that force X to build strict security safeguards into Grok. If the violations are confirmed, the platform also risks a substantial fine. EDRi is also calling on European institutions and politicians to reconsider their presence on X and to look for safer alternatives in a public and sovereign social web.
