Musk claims critics of X seizing on “any excuse for censorship”

(MENAFN) Elon Musk has argued that criticism directed at his social media platform X is being leveraged as a justification for limiting expression, following controversy over its AI chatbot enabling the creation of non-consensual and explicit deepfake images, including those involving women and children.

Responding to the backlash, Musk asserted that opponents are exploiting the issue to advance restrictions on speech. “They just want to suppress free speech,” he wrote on his X account on Saturday.

The criticism intensified after the chatbot’s image-generation function was found to allow obscene digital manipulation. Initially, Musk’s AI company rejected the accusations with the statement “Legacy Media Lies.” Subsequently, the Grok chatbot restricted image generation for non-paying users, making the feature available only to subscribers.

However, according to officials and critics, limiting the tool to paid users does not adequately address the problem. Governments and organizations in multiple countries have condemned the decision or taken steps to block the feature altogether.

Reports indicate that Indonesia has temporarily suspended access to Grok over concerns related to deepfake content. Meanwhile, European Union officials have called on social media companies to take stronger measures to prevent the creation and spread of illegal material.

In the United Kingdom, authorities criticized X’s move to restrict the AI image tool to subscribers, arguing that it effectively transforms the ability to produce unlawful content into a “premium service.”

While Musk has previously faced scrutiny for backing controversial political movements, observers note that the current wave of criticism targeting his AI chatbot is centered primarily on the generation of obscene and potentially illegal material, as well as broader concerns over violations of public decency standards.

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