AUSTIN – Texas House Democrats on Monday dared Attorney General Ken Paxton to take on Elon Musk.
Led by Rep. Mihaela Plesa of Dallas, more than 40 Democrats demanded an inquiry into allegations that Musk’s social media platform X has been used to churn out explicit, sexualized images without consent.
That move sets up a politically charged test for Paxton, who is running for the Senate, potentially pitting the Republican against a powerful conservative figure, key national GOP donor and major presence in Texas.
Paxton’s office could not immediately be reached for comment. Paxton has long emphasized his tough stance on child exploitation and big tech, including lawsuits against major technology companies.
Political Points
Plesa said she became concerned with Grok, Musk’s chatbot tool, after encountering a sexualized image of Renee Nicole Good, the Minnesota woman fatally shot by an Immigration and Customs Enforcement agent last week.
“I was horrified when I saw what I saw on X, and I’m sure that parents are horrified to see this, too,” she said.
Grok is an artificial intelligence chatbot built into X, able to generate text and images in response to user prompts. It is accessible through an app, a website and an account on X.
In recent weeks, some X users have used it to craft sexualized images of women and minors. Musk has at times appeared to delight in the tool, asking it to create an image of himself in a bikini recently.
In a post last week, Musk said accounts trying to use Grok to create images of undressed children would suffer “consequences.” The company also said in a statement on X that it would remove illegal content depicting children and permanently suspend accounts that asked Grok to make such images.
Plesa said those assurances fall short without clear enforcement and legal accountability at the state level.
“We are asking the attorney general to focus on our kids, on women in the state who have experienced this and have become victims of this,” she said. “We are asking for clear pathways as to if you are a victim, how to resolve this, how to get legal action, how to get these images removed from the internet.”
Plesa, a two-term Democrat who represents a Collin County district that includes part of far North Dallas and Plano, said she encountered images while scrolling on X, began researching and found numerous Grok-created sexualized images.
Her call for an investigation adds Texas lawmakers to a growing set of officials across in the U.S. and beyond seeking government scrutiny of X. Several Democratic U.S. senators have called for a review of Grok, and the European Union ordered X to retain documents related to the AI chatbot.
Grok limited requests for AI-generated images to paid subscribers on Thursday.
FILE – Elon Musk flashes his T-shirt that reads “DOGE” to the media as he walks on South Lawn of the White House, in Washington, March 9, 2025. (AP Photo/Jose Luis Magana, File)
Jose Luis Magana / AP
State enforcement
Plesa said Texas lawmakers enacted tools that can hold Musk’s company accountable for the sexualized images.
Last year, the Legislature created the Texas Responsible Artificial Intelligence Governance Act, making it illegal to create an AI tool solely for the creation of child pornography and deep fake videos. The law took effect on Jan. 1.
Attorney General Ken Paxton. (AP Photo/Eric Gay, File)
Eric Gay / AP
Paxton “has the authority to ask X to shut down until we figure out what’s going on,” Plesa said.
Paxton has not shied away from suing big tech companies. His office secured billion-dollar settlements from Google and Meta over allegations of illegally tracking users’ geolocation and biometric data.
But Plesa said Musk’s political ties to Republicans raise questions about whether Paxton would pursue an investigation of a perceived ally.
“It seems like when it comes to things like his friends or people that he’s allied himself with, he’s turning a blind eye,” she said.
Musk served as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) under President Donald Trump and has given millions to elect Republicans in recent years.
Paxton gave up running again for attorney general to take on Sen. John Cornyn in the March 3 Republican primary.
Call to investigate
The ask: More than 40 Texas House Democrats want Attorney General Ken Paxton to investigate Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok over the creation of sexualized images.The stakes: The request puts Paxton, now running for the Senate, between his tough-on-tech, child-protection record and a powerful conservative donor.The hook: Lawmakers cite Texas’ new AI law and Paxton’s past billion-dollar tech settlements as evidence he has the authority to act.
This is a developing story.