Sir Keir Starmer today dismissed Elon Musk’s changes to his AI tool as ‘insulting’ to victims amid a furious row over sexual images on the billionaire’s X social media site.
Downing Street reiterated the Prime Minister was leaving ‘all options’ on the table as regulator Ofcom looks into X and xAI, the firm which created the Grok AI tool.
There has been a widespread outcry after Grok, which is available on X, was found to have been used to produce naked images of people, including children.
The tool was also reported to have been used to manipulate images of women to remove their clothes and put them in sexualised positions.
Grok has now stopped generating images for most of X users, with the AI tool limiting its image generation and editing features to only paying subscribers of the site.
This means users’ names and payment details must be on file. But Downing Street on Friday said this was ‘not a solution’ and warned it had merely turned the generation of deefakes into a ‘premium service’.
The PM’s spokesman said: ‘That move… that simply turns an AI feature that allows the creation of unlawful images into a premium service.
‘It’s not a solution. In fact, it’s insulting the victims of misogyny and sexual violence. What it does prove is that X can move swiftly when it wants to do so.’
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The PM’s spokesman added: ‘You heard the Prime Minister yesterday. He was abundantly clear that X needs to act and needs to act now, it is time for X to grip this issue.
‘If another media company had billboards in town centres showing unlawful images, it would act immediately to take them down or face public backlash.’
Downing Street reiterated ‘all options’ are on the table, including for Ofcom to use its powers to ‘take any action’.
It came after an ally of US President Donald Trump threatened to slap sanctions on Britain if Sir Keir takes action against X over AI-generated sexual images.
Anna Paulina Luna, a Republican member of the US House of Representatives, warned the PM against any effort to ban X, formerly known as Twitter, in Britain.
She vowed to bring forward legislation to sanction both Sir Keir and the UK as a whole if Sir Keir attempted to shut down the social media site owned by Mr Musk.
Ms Luna, who sits on the House Committee on Foreign Affairs, claimed critics of X were launching a ‘political war’ against Mr Musk and ‘free speech’.
Asked about the US congresswoman’s threat to bring legislation to sanction Sir Keir the UK bans X, the PM’s spokesman said the Government is focusing on stopping the creation of unlawful images on the site.
The spokesman would not be drawn on whether the Government might heed growing calls from Labour MPs for ministers to boycott X and said the focus at this time is ‘stopping these abhorrent images’.
A message sent by Grok on X to users requesting image editing currently says: ‘Image generation and editing are currently limited to paying subscribers. You can subscribe to unlock these features.’
It costs between £3.50 to £36.17 per month to become a ‘premium’ user of X, depending on which level of paid subscription is chosen.
Ofcom has powers under the Online Safety Act to fine businesses or take criminal action.
It can also order payment providers, advertisers and internet service providers to stop working with a site, effectively banning them, though this would require agreement from the courts.
Liz Kendall, the Science and Technology Secretary, said on Friday that Ofcom had the ‘full backing’ of ministers to use the powers available to it.
She told broadcasters: ‘X needs to get a grip and get this material down.
‘I would remind them that in the Online Safety Act, there are backstop powers to block access to services if they refuse to comply with the law for people in the UK.
‘If Ofcom decides to use those powers, they would have the full backing of the Government.’
Ms Kendall said the Government expected to see ‘next steps’ from Ofcom in a matter of ‘days, not weeks’.
‘This is hugely important, women and girls deserve to be safe online,’ she added.
‘They deserve to be safe in the real world too. This Government and the Prime Minister personally has made tackling violence against women and girls a top priority.
‘And as the Tech Secretary, I am determined to do everything possible to make sure that happens.’
Sir Keir on Thursday called on X to ‘get their act together’ amid concerns about the AI creation of sexualised images of adults and children on the site.
‘This is disgraceful. It’s disgusting. And it’s not to be tolerated,’ the PM told Greatest Hits Radio.
‘X has got to get a grip of this. Ofcom has our full support to take action in relation to this. This is wrong.
‘It’s unlawful. We’re not going to tolerate it. I’ve asked for all options to be on the table.
‘It’s disgusting. X need to get their act together and get this material down. We will take action on this because it’s simply not tolerable.’
Ms Luna later responded to suggestions that X could be banned in Britain under powers within the Online Safety Act.
She posted on X: ‘If Starmer is successful in banning X in Britain, I will move forward with legislation that is currently being drafted to sanction not only Starmer, but Britain as a whole.
‘This would mirror actions previously taken by the United States in response to foreign governments restricting the platform, including the dispute with Brazil in 2024-2025, which resulted in tariffs, visa revocations, and sanctions and consequences tied to free speech concerns against Brazilian officials over concerns related to censorship and free-speech violations.
‘Starmer should reconsider this course of action, or there will be consequences.
‘There are always technical bugs during the early phases of new technology, especially AI, and those issues are typically addressed quickly.
‘X treats these matters seriously and acts promptly. Let’s be clear: this is not about technical compliance.
‘This is a political war against @elonmusk and free speech – nothing more.’
The PoliticsHome website published leaked WhatsApp messages showing Labour MPs urging the Government to delete its official accounts on X.
The MPs’ arguments included that Mr Musk is ‘fascist’ and that Grok had put ‘children in harm’s way’.
Senior Tory MP Andrew Griffith, the shadow business secretary, rejected the idea of boycotting or banning X.
He said: ‘You’ve got to be where the debate is taking place, and that’s all social media.
‘Look, let’s just be really clear: it’s not X itself or Grok that is creating those images, it’s individuals, and they should be held accountable if they’re doing something that infringes the law.’
