Data Protection Commission (DPC) Ireland has opened a formal investigation into the Grok artificial intelligence chatbot owned by the X platform. This investigation is related to the processing of personal data as well as the potential creation of manipulative sexual images and videos, including those involving children.
The DPC is the EU's main regulator for X because the company's operations in the region are based in Ireland. Under the provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), this authority is authorized to impose fines of up to 4 percent of the company's global revenue.
The regulator said the decision to open the investigation was notified to X on Monday, February 16. This process aims to assess whether the company complies with its obligations to protect personal data in accordance with the GDPR.
The Grok chatbot, developed by Elon Musk's AI company, reportedly produced sexually suggestive manipulated images of real individuals after receiving a user request. The phenomenon sparked global condemnation as well as a series of investigations in various jurisdictions.
The X platform previously announced restrictions to prevent Grok accounts from producing such content. However, Reuters' findings earlier this month showed that the chatbot could still produce similar images when given certain commands.
Deputy Commissioner of the DPC, Graham Doyle, stated that his party had interacted with the X entity in Ireland since the media report first appeared on the ability of the @Grok account to generate sexually manipulative images of real people, including children.
As the main supervisory authority for X in the EU and the EEA, the DPC will examine the company's compliance with a number of fundamental GDPR obligations related to data processing in the case.
Previously, the European Commission on January 26 also opened an investigation into allegations of the spread of illegal content by Grok in the EU. On February 3, British data protection authorities also launched a similar investigation into the potential production of manipulative sexual content by the chatbot.
The administration of US President Donald Trump has previously criticized EU regulations on US technology companies, including fines that are considered a form of economic pressure on US companies.
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