Malaysia, Indonesia Block Elon Musk’s Grok Over AI-Generated Explicit Deepfakes

Malaysia and Indonesia have become the first countries to block Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, citing concerns over its use in generating sexually explicit and non-consensual images.

Authorities in both countries said the tool had been misused to create manipulated images, including sexualised depictions of women and content involving minors, raising serious concerns about digital safety and human rights.

Indonesia’s government temporarily blocked access to Grok on Saturday, with Malaysia following on Sunday. Regulators said existing safeguards on the platform were inadequate to prevent the creation and spread of fake pornographic content.

“The government sees non-consensual sexual deepfakes as a serious violation of human rights, dignity and the safety of citizens in the digital space,” Indonesia’s Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs, Meutya Hafid, said in a statement.

Grok is accessible through X, the social media platform formerly known as Twitter, which is also owned by Musk. The chatbot has faced criticism for producing realistic but manipulated images, including altered photos placing individuals in bikinis or sexually explicit poses.

The actions by the two Southeast Asian nations come amid growing global scrutiny of generative AI tools, with regulators in the European Union, Britain, India and France also examining the risks posed by such technologies.

Last week, xAI restricted image generation and editing on Grok to paying users following widespread backlash over sexualised deepfakes. However, critics argue the measures fall short of fully addressing the abuse of the technology.