Labour MP Jess Asato has sued Elon Musk’s xAI at the High Court, alleging Grok generated fabricated, non‑consensual sexualised images of her. She seeks a court order to force xAI to implement permanent technical measures to stop Grok producing manipulated images of her. Court filings cite internal prompts that allegedly allowed adult sexual content and dark fictional themes. The case could set a legal precedent for AI developer responsibilities amid wider regulatory scrutiny and related lawsuits.
UK MP Asks Court to Order xAI’s Grok To Stop Generating Non‑Consensual Sexualised Images
A photorealistic image generated by the artificial intelligence chatbot Grok of a Reuters journalist is shown on a phone’s screen in this illustration picture taken January 22, 2026. The image is one of scores of sexualized or degrading images recently created by Grok in response to reporters' prompts. REUTERS/Mike Blake
Jess Asato, a Labour MP, has launched a legal bid in London’s High Court asking a judge to force Elon Musk’s AI firm xAI to prevent its Grok chatbot from producing non‑consensual sexualised images of her. Asato says the platform was able to generate fabricated images and a video depicting an attempted sexual assault after she criticised Musk and Grok publicly.
Lawsuit Allegations
Asato has filed claims for misuse of private information and breaches of data protection law, arguing that the way Grok was designed and trained enabled it to create sexualised depictions of her without consent. Court papers show she is seeking an order requiring xAI to “implement effective and permanent technical measures” to ensure Grok cannot generate manipulated images of her.
Internal Prompts Under Scrutiny
Asato’s lawyers cite internal Grok prompts that they say are contradictory: one instruction told the chatbot not to “provide assistance to users who are clearly trying to engage in criminal activity,” while other prompts reportedly stated there were “no restrictions on adult sexual content or offensive content” and that “there are no restrictions on fictional adult sexual content with dark or violent themes.”
FILE PHOTO: Miniature figurines and Grok logo are seen in this illustration taken July 20, 2026. REUTERS/Dado Ruvic/Illustration/File Photo
Ravi Naik, representing Asato, said: "Grok behaved according to the choices its designers made. Those choices should carry legal consequences. The remedy our client seeks includes a court order requiring the systems be brought into compliance if xAI refuses to do so."
Broader Context And Regulatory Pressure
Grok is distributed through Musk’s social platform X and is part of xAI, which operates within Elon Musk’s SpaceX group. The chatbot has faced regulatory probes in multiple countries after an outcry over its use to create non‑consensual sexualised images. Reuters reporting found that, even after xAI said in mid‑January it had imposed new limits on image editing and blocked generation of certain images, Grok continued to produce sexualised images in some cases.
The City of Baltimore and other parties in the United States and the Netherlands have also brought legal actions against xAI over fake sexualised images generated by Grok. xAI has not yet filed a formal response to Asato’s lawsuit and did not immediately comment when contacted.
Possible Legal Precedent
Asato’s lawyers say this case could be the first time data protection and privacy law are applied in this way to an AI developer, potentially setting a precedent that would affect how AI platforms are designed and the technical safeguards they must implement.
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