The European probe comes after UK media regulator Ofcom opened a formal investigation into Grok, while Malaysia and Indonesia have banned the chatbot altogether.
Following the backlash, xAI restricted the use of Grok to paying subscribers and said it has “implemented technological measures” to limit Grok from generating certain sexualized images.
Musk has also said “anyone using Grok to make illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they upload illegal content.”
An EU official said that “with the harm that is exposed to individuals that are subject to these images, we have not been convinced so far by what mitigating measures the platform has taken to have that under control.”
The company, which acquired Musk’s social media site X last year, has designed its AI products to have fewer content “guardrails” than competitors such as OpenAI and Google. Musk called its Grok model “maximally truth-seeking.”
The commission fined X €120 million in December last year for breaching its regulations for transparency, providing insufficient access to data and the deceptive design of its blue ticks for verified accounts.
The fine was criticized by Musk and the US government, with the Trump administration claiming the EU was unfairly targeting American groups and infringing freedom of speech principles championed by the Maga movement.
X did not immediately reply to a request for comment.
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