Elon Musk has accused the UK government of seeking to suppress free speech after ministers threatened fines and a potential ban for his social media platform X. This followed reports that its AI tool, Grok, was used to create non-consensual sexual images of women and children.
Musk claimed that Grok became the most downloaded app on the UK App Store on Friday night, after the government warned of action unless the feature generating sexually harassing imagery was removed. In response to the threat of a ban, Musk stated, “They just want to suppress free speech.”
Thousands of women have reportedly faced abuse through the AI tool, which was initially used to digitally alter clothed photos into images showing subjects in micro bikinis, and later for more extreme manipulations. Pictures of teenage girls and children were also edited to show them in swimwear, with experts warning some content could be classified as child sexual abuse material. Some users escalated demands, asking for bruising, blood, or depictions of women tied up, gagged, or shot.
Technology Secretary Liz Kendall said on Friday that ministers were seriously considering blocking access to X in the UK. She urged the platform to remove the offensive material and highlighted that under the Online Safety Act, Ofcom has backup powers to block services that fail to comply with the law. Kendall expects Ofcom to take action within “days not weeks.”
Australian Prime Minister Anthony Albanese echoed these concerns, calling the use of AI to sexualize people without consent “abhorrent” and criticizing social media platforms for lacking social responsibility. Australia recently banned social media for users under 16.
Some right-wing figures have framed the issue as one of free speech. Former Prime Minister Liz Truss responded to the potential ban by commenting, “Starmer is really losing it now.”
In response, X partially restricted access to Grok on Friday, limiting its public image generation to paid subscribers and reportedly stopping the creation of bikini images. However, the Grok app, which does not generate images publicly, can still produce explicit material from women’s photos.
Other nudification apps remain available. Labour MP Jess Asato, who campaigns against sexual abuse and harassment, called for urgent legislation to ban such tools, noting that one was recently advertised on YouTube without violating Google’s policies. Google has been approached for comment.
Frequently Asked Questions
Of course Here is a list of FAQs about Elon Musks claims regarding the UK and free speech designed to be clear and accessible
BeginnerLevel Questions
1 What exactly is Elon Musk claiming
Elon Musk is claiming that new online safety laws proposed by the UK government are an attempt to restrict free speech He argues that these laws could force his social media platform X to censor legal but controversial content or face a potential ban
2 Why is the UK government looking at banning X
The UK government is not actively trying to ban X However under its new Online Safety Act Ofcom has the power to impose huge fines or as a last resort block access to platforms that repeatedly fail to comply with new safety rules such as removing illegal content quickly
3 What is the UKs Online Safety Act
Its a new law designed to make the internet safer especially for children It requires social media platforms to proactively identify and remove illegal content and to give users tools to filter out harmful legal content
4 What is free speech in this context
In this debate free speech refers to the ability for people to express legal opinions online even if they are offensive controversial or factually wrong Musk believes platforms should not remove such content while regulators argue platforms have a duty to limit its spread to protect users
Intermediate Advanced Questions
5 Isnt removing illegal content a good thing Whats the problem
Yes everyone agrees platforms should remove clearly illegal content The conflict arises around legal but harmful content Critics of the Act fear that the broad definitions and threat of massive fines will cause platforms to overcensorremoving contentious political speech satire or debate to avoid legal risk which they see as a chilling effect on free expression
6 What specific part of the Act is Musk objecting to
A key point of contention is the requirement for major platforms to offer users legal but harmful content filters Musk objects to the principle of platforms being legally mandated to limit the reach of any legal speech seeing it as statemandated censorship
