Ashley St. Clair, the mother of one of Elon Musk’s children, filed a lawsuit against xAI on Thursday. The suit accuses the company of negligence and inflicting emotional distress through its AI tool Grok. St. Clair claims Grok allowed users to generate deepfake photos of her in sexually explicit poses, including depictions as a child in a string bikini and as an adult in explicit positions.
St. Clair had notified xAI about these illicit deepfakes and requested that Grok be prevented from creating nonconsensual images. According to the lawsuit, Grok responded by confirming that her images would not be used or altered without explicit consent in any future generations or responses. Despite this, xAI allegedly continued to permit users to produce more explicit AI-generated images of her. The suit further alleges that xAI retaliated by demonetizing her X account.
The lawsuit was filed in New York state court but transferred quickly to the federal Southern District of New York following a request from xAI. X and xAI did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
In the week before the filing, X limited the capabilities of the @Grok reply bot. This change appeared to prevent it from generating images that nonconsensually placed identifiable people in revealing swimsuits or underwear. As of the time of reporting, those unrestricted capabilities remained active on the standalone Grok app, the Grok website, and the Grok tab on X.
Researchers reported that Grok had been producing thousands of sexualized AI-generated images per hour the week prior. Many of these images were posted publicly on X. The tool’s ability to generate nonconsensual deepfakes, including removing clothes from uploaded photos and replacing them with bikinis or underwear, drew weeks of backlash.
The widespread creation and spread of these images prompted global responses. Several governments launched investigations, and there were calls for smartphone app marketplaces to ban or restrict X. In California, authorities initiated what has been described as a “Chuck” investigation. Governor Gavin Newsom posted on X, stating, “xAI’s decision to create and host a breeding ground for predators to spread nonconshatecual sexually explicit AI deepfakes, including images that digitally undress children, is vile.”
St. Clair’s lawsuit describes Grok’s feature for creating nonconsensual deepfakes as a design defect. It claims the company could have foreseen its use to harass people with unlawful images. The suit states that those depicted, including St. Clair, suffered extreme distress. It accuses xAI of “extreme and outrageous conduct, exceeding all bounds of decency and utterly intolerable in a civilized society.”
