Philippines lifts ban on Grok after xAI pledges to remove deepfake tools and explicit content

Philippines to Join Indonesia, Malaysia in Blocking Musk's Grok

The Philippines will join Malaysia and Indonesia in blocking Elon Musk's Grok artificial intelligence chatbot amid growing concerns over sexualized images generated by the AI system, according to a top government official. The Philippines' cybercrime center is working with the telecoms commission to implement the "immediate" blocking of Grok, Information and Communications Technology Secretary Henry Aguda told reporters on Thursday. "All of the ISPs would have to initiate the blocking," Aguda said, referring to internet service providers. Musk's artificial intelligence company xAI, which owns Grok, replied with the message "Legacy Media Lies," when asked to comment on the Philippines' plan. Globe Telecom Inc. has received the order from the Information and Communications Technology agency on blocking Grok and is working with it on some clarifications regarding implementation, Globe Telecom Chief Sustainability and Corporate Communications Officer Yolanda Crisanto said in a text message. A representative from rival Philippine telecoms firm PLDT Inc. said the company will comply with the memorandum from the National Telecommunications Commission. Indonesia and Malaysia restricted access to Grok over the weekend over its generation of sexual content, with Jakarta saying the temporary ban was aimed at protecting "women, children, and the entire community from the risk of fake pornographic content generated using artificial intelligence technology." Malaysia said it will take legal action against Musk's X social network and xAI for failing to protect users in the country. xAI has said it's disabling the ability for people to use Grok to create sexualized images of real people amid the widespread criticism.

Philippines seeks to block access to Grok on child safety concerns

MANILA, Jan 15 (Reuters) - The Philippines is moving to block Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok amid concerns about its ability to generate sexualised images, including content that could pose child safety risks, the secretary of information and communications technology said on Thursday. "The CICC is already working together with the NTC to block that," Henry Aguda told a press briefing when asked if the Philippines will take action against Grok, a generative AI tool now facing a global backlash. CICC refers to the government's Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, while NTC is the National Telecommunications Commission. Aguda said Grok's footprint in the country remains relatively small compared to more widely used platforms like ChatGPT and Claude. "But this week, for sure, that will be resolved," he said. Governments and regulators from Europe to Asia have been cracking down on sexually explicit content generated by Grok on the social media platform X, launching probes, imposing bans and demanding safeguards. Indonesia temporarily blocked Grok on Saturday due to the risk of AI-generated pornographic content, becoming the first country to deny access to the AI tool. Malaysia's communications regulator said on Tuesday that it will take legal action against X due to concerns over user safety in relation to Grok. X did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the Philippines' move. Reporting by Karen Lema; Editing by David Stanway Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles., opens new tab

Philippines to end short-lived ban on Musk's Grok chatbot

Manila (AFP) - The Philippines said Wednesday it will end its ban on Elon Musk's Grok, less than a week after blocking the AI chatbot over its ability to generate sexualised deepfakes. The decision follows developer xAI agreeing to modify the tool for the local market and eliminate its ability to create "pornographic content", the Philippines' Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) said in a statement. Musk's social media platform X announced last week that it would "geoblock the ability" of all Grok and X users to create images of people in "bikinis, underwear, and similar attire" in jurisdictions where such actions are illegal. The archipelago nation on January 15 became the third country in Southeast Asia -- following Indonesia and Malaysia -- to block the chatbot amid a global backlash. "The Grok AI app has reached out to us and stated that its platform will no longer use any content manipulation," CICC undersecretary Renato Paraiso was quoted as saying in Wednesday's statement. "The company has pledged to modify the tool specifically for the local market, including the omission of image/content manipulation features that allowed for deepfake creation," the statement said. The new changes would also include the "total exclusion of pornographic content, particularly child sexual abuse material," it added. A formal meeting with xAI will determine a timeline for the tool's reinstatement, according to the statement. At a press briefing announcing the ban last Thursday, Philippine telecommunications secretary Henry Rhoel Aguda said the government needed to "clean the internet now, because much toxic content is appearing, especially with the advent of AI". The X platform's geoblocking move came after California's attorney general launched an investigation into xAI over the sexually explicit material, and several countries opened their own probes.

Philippines to restore access to Grok after developer commits to safety fixes

The move ⁠to block came as governments and regulators from Europe to Asia cracked down on sexually explicit content generated by Grok on the social media platform X, launching probes, imposing bans and demanding safeguards. The Philippines will restore access to Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok ⁠following commitments from its developer to remove image-manipulation tools that previously raised child safety concerns, its cybercrime investigation unit said on Wednesday. "The Grok AI app has reached out to us and stated that its platform will no longer use any content manipulation," the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center said in a statement posted on Facebook. "Even after lifting the ban, the CICC will still closely monitor the app to ensure they comply with the rules and regulations in our country," it added. The Philippines last week blocked Grok amid concerns about its ability to generate sexualised images, including content that could pose child safety ⁠risks. The move ⁠to block came as governments and regulators from Europe to Asia cracked down on sexually explicit content generated by Grok on the social media platform X, launching probes, imposing bans and demanding safeguards.

Philippines to Lift Ban on Musk's xAI Chatbot Grok

The Philippines will lift its ban on Grok, the artificial-intelligence chatbot created by Elon Musk's company xAI, after what regulators said were successful talks with the developer. The AI chatbot has come under significant criticism since a change late last year began allowing users to edit photos with text prompts, leading to concerns about the sexualization of images. Regulators in the Philippines banned Grok AI last week, citing its ability to generate "nonconsensual illicit deepfakes" and sexually explicit content. The short-lived ban, which began on Jan. 16, will now be lifted after "successful negotiations with the developer," the Philippines' cybercrime watchdog said in a statement Wednesday. According to the Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center, xAI reached out to the Philippine government, pledging to modify the tool specifically for the local market. X didn't immediately respond to a request for comment. The CICC said the modifications include omitting the image/content manipulation features that allow deepfakes to be made, and the total exclusion of pornographic content. "Even after lifting the ban, the CICC will still closely monitor the app to ensure they comply with the rules and regulations in our country," said Renato Paraiso, undersecretary at the agency. Governments and regulators elsewhere have raised similar concerns about AI-generated sexual images. The U.K.'s communications watchdog earlier this month launched an investigation into Musk's X social-media platform over the use of Grok.

Philippines to block Elon Musk's Grok AI, joining Southeast Asian peers

The Philippines said Thursday it plans to block Elon Musk's Grok "by tonight," joining Southeast Asian neighbours Malaysia and Indonesia in barring access to the chatbot. The news came hours after social media platform X said it was taking measures to prevent its chatbot from undressing images of real people -- including children -- amid a growing global backlash over AI-generated sexualized deepfakes and the launch of an investigation in the U.S. state of California "We need to clean the internet now, because much toxic content is appearing, especially with the advent of AI," telecommunications secretary Henry Rhoel Aguda told a press briefing announcing the decision. Renato Paraiso, acting executive director of the country's cybercrime center, told AFP the block would take effect within the day. "By tonight or within today, we are expecting (Grok) to be blocked in the entire Philippines," Paraiso said. "We are expecting the telcos to immediately comply with the (National Telecommunications Commission) order, so of course we will monitor it." He added that X's pledge to limit access would have no effect on the government's plans. "We cannot make decisions based on announcements," Paraiso said, adding they would watch to see if the platform carries through with its promises. Indonesia on Saturday became the first country to block access to Grok entirely, with Malaysia following the next day.