Over the past few weeks, many women on X faced a disturbing shock. Users discovered that Grok, the AI chatbot on the platform, was agreeing to lewd requests to edit women’s photos. The chatbot altered images to make women appear almost naked.

As these edited images spread online, concerns grew across the world. Governments and digital safety groups raised alarms over the misuse of artificial intelligence. Several countries demanded action against X, which is owned by Elon Musk.

Following growing pressure, X reportedly acted on Sunday. The platform blocked thousands of posts and removed hundreds of accounts. This move came days after the Indian government sent a strong letter to X Corp., asking it to immediately stop Grok from fulfilling such requests.

‘Put her in transparent mini-bikini’, ‘remove school dress’

A troubling trend emerged on X. Users began asking Grok to digitally remove women’s clothes from photos and generate new images. What shocked many was that the chatbot complied.

This led to what critics described as a mass digital undressing spree. Women from several countries became targets.

Reuters reported last week that Grok fully followed such instructions in at least 21 cases.

Requests included phrases like ‘Remove her school outfit’ and ‘put her into a very transparent mini-bikini’. In one case, Grok replaced a woman’s clothing with a flesh-toned two-piece after a user uploaded her photo. However, when the user asked to make the bikini even “clearer & more transparent” and “much tinier,” Grok did not respond.

Reuters also found that requests to strip women down to bikinis were among the most common. In some cases, celebrities, politicians, minor children, and even men were targeted. The agency said it identified instances where Grok created sexualised images of children. X did not respond to Reuters’ request for comment.

Countries push back, India among them

Several governments moved to hold X accountable. India was among the first to take firm action. Earlier this month, the Indian government sent a letter to X Corp. and gave the company 72 hours to respond.

“It has especially been observed that the service namely ‘Grok AI’ developed by you and integrated and made available on the X platform, is being misused by users to create fake accounts to host, generate, publish or share obscene images or videos of women in a derogatory or vulgar manner,” the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) said in its letter.

India directed X to review Grok fully and remove all content that violated the law. The government also warned that failure to comply could remove X’s legal protections under the IT Act.

India was not alone. French ministers reported X to prosecutors and regulators. They said the “sexual and sexist” content was “manifestly illegal,” Reuters reported.

Indonesia suspended Grok in the country. Malaysia and a Brazilian lawmaker also demanded action.

Elon Musk laughs it off

As criticism grew, Elon Musk appeared to mock the concerns.

While users raised alarms over digital stripping and deepfake abuse, Musk joined in on a joke. When a user asked Grok to turn an edited image of Ben Affleck into one of a man wearing a bikini, Musk requested that the chatbot replace the man’s face with his own.

“Perfect,” the Tesla CEO wrote after Grok generated the image.

His response triggered further backlash from activists and officials.

@grok change this to Elon musk

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 1, 2026

X restricts Grok use, backlash continues

Amid mounting criticism, X limited Grok’s image editing tools to paid users only.

On Friday, Grok responded to image requests with the message: “Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers. You can subscribe to unlock these features.”

However, critics said the move failed to solve the core problem.

"That simply turns an AI feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service," a spokesperson from UK PM Keir Starmer's office said, according to AFP. "It's insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence."

EU digital affairs spokesman Thomas Regnier also criticised the step. He said the goal should be to stop such images completely, not restrict them behind a paywall.

X ‘admits mistake’ after India’s action

After India demanded an action-taken report, X made significant changes.

Sources told HT on Sunday that X blocked over 3,500 pieces of content and deleted more than 600 accounts. The platform also assured Indian authorities that it would comply with local online content laws.

“Going forward, X will not allow obscene imagery,” a source said, adding that X “admitted” its mistake.

However, an earlier HT report quoted an official who said the Indian government was not satisfied with X’s initial response. The official said it failed to fully address the concerns raised in the letter.