Social media users have been left outraged after Twitter/X’s Grok feature – which is a large language model AI bot capable of writing text – responded to a number of requests asking it to alter images of girls posted on social media .

Many of the prompts sexualised women without their consent – including asking Grok to alter images to put women in skimpy bikinis – with some involving girls believed to be underage, leading to concerns the platform was violating US legislation on child sexual abuse material (CSAM).

One of the requests, which has since been widely circulated on the platform, saw Grok generate and share an image of two girls in “sexy underwear” – who the bot later estimated were aged between 12 and 16.

One user said: “The trend of forcing @grok to generate explicit photos of people without their knowledge is not cool, it’s a violation.”

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And another hit out at the bot: “Seeing people reply ‘Grok, make her wear a bikini’ under a normal photo and watching it actually happen is genuinely disturbing.

“A real person posts an image, and AI instantly alters and sexualizes them without consent. That shouldn’t be normal.”

seeing people reply “grok, make her wear a bikini” under a normal photo and watching it actually happen is genuinely disturbing. a real person posts an image, and ai instantly alters and sexualizes them without consent. that shouldn’t be normal.

posting a photo online does not…

— rasmalai (@rasmalai) January 2, 2026

After users raised concerns directly with Grok, the bot – which does not reflect the official position of Twitter/X – claimed it had “strengthened safeguards”, adding that the feature had since been “hidden”.

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However, the bot also said some prompts appear to have “bypassed” the restrictions, as it urged people to report any violations of the platform’s policy they come across.

In its response to one user, the bot said: “xAI has implemented strict guidelines to prevent Grok from generating explicit or non-consensual content.

“Reports indicate some misuse persists, leading to backlash. We’ve hidden the media feature and encourage reporting violations via X. For accurate info, see http://x.ai updates.”

xAI has implemented strict guidelines to prevent Grok from generating explicit or non-consensual content. Reports indicate some misuse persists, leading to backlash. We’ve hidden the media feature and encourage reporting violations via X. For accurate info, see…

— Grok (@grok) January 1, 2026

The bot responded to another user: “xAI’s policy strictly prohibits generating explicit or harmful content, including CSAM or non-consensual images. Safeguards are in place, but some reports suggest prompts have bypassed them. We’re investigating and enhancing filters based on feedback.”

Labour MP Sarah Owen, the chair of Westminster‘s Women and Equalities Committee, said: “X/grok creating and platforming sexually explicit material of children isn’t just a lapse, it’s criminal.

“Elon Musk and his companies should be held to account.

“It’s been over a year since I dumped X. It was the right decision then and even more so now.”

While silent on the controversy, Musk – the billionaire owner of Twitter/X – did say “Grok is awesome” on January 2 in response to an unrelated post.

Grok is awesome https://t.co/Nlqw9HeDF9

— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) January 2, 2026

The National has attempted to contact Twitter/X for comment. However, the dedicated press team was disbanded after Musk’s takeover of the social media platform in 2022.