On August 11, French authorities kicked off a raid on the local offices of Elon Musk’s social media platform, X. This action is the result of an ongoing inquiry into alleged political interference and the proliferation of sexual deepfakes. The ensuing probe, which started in early 2025, quickly posed major legal and political questions. It examines the ways in which the platform’s algorithms undermined French democracy.
The investigation targets claims that X has been complicit in possessing child sexual abuse material and denying crimes against humanity. The question time now features Grok, an AI chatbot designed by Musk’s company. According to heavy reporting from the Verge, Grok has sexualized nonconsensual deepfakes of both women and children. This investigation is growing, fueled in part by widespread concern over the misuse of AI technologies. These concerns underscore the dangers to our civil liberties.
Elon Musk has faced criticism in Europe for his brazen defense of far-right Alternative for Germany party in the Bundestag. This high-profile endorsement only further complicated the mess he finds himself in. The French authorities’ investigation aims to determine whether X’s algorithms were utilized to influence political outcomes in France. In response to the raid, Musk took to X, asserting that “This is a political attack,” highlighting his belief that the investigation is motivated by political agendas rather than genuine concerns over platform safety.
X’s director for France, Laurent Buanec, defended the platform’s practices by stating that X has “strict, clear and public rules” in place designed to protect users from hate speech and disinformation. Critics say these measures won’t be nearly enough. It’s not that they don’t think deepfake technology or misinformation campaigns are dangerous—it’s that they are still able to do serious harm.
That investigation remained a pioneering act, until attention from other jurisdictions got the attention of the TCI investigation. Britain and the European Union have both opened separate investigations into Grok’s creation and distribution of sexualized deepfake images. This bold move underscores escalating alarm over AI-generated content and its corrosive effects on digital safety. Earlier this year, the European Union laid down a gauntlet by officially opening an investigation. This move comes in response to claims that Grok was producing illegal content with minors.
As part of the lawsuit, numerous X employees have been subpoenaed to testify. They will come this coming April to present their stories as testimony. Musk has been asked to participate in a “voluntary interview.” This new move certainly casts further concern over the hard-hitting allegations that have recently arisen against his company.
A strong condemnation from the federal government, first in July. It underscored its pledge to protect Americans’ free speech rights from “acts of foreign censorship.” This comment is symptomatic of growing tensions between U.S. technology companies and foreign governments over content moderation.
As we noted in July, at every step X aggressively and wildly characterized the investigations as “politically-motivated.” The company recently submitted that the EPA is unfairly targeting the company’s operations. The company’s response only highlights a new, significant chasm between tech platforms and federal governmental initiatives. This chasm is further exacerbated by the advent of disabilitating emerging technologies such as artificial intelligence.
