Jakarta: Indonesia has suspended access to Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s startup xAI, citing serious concerns over the generation of pornographic and non-consensual deepfake content, particularly involving women and children.
The decision, announced on Saturday by Indonesia’s Minister of Communication and Digital Affairs, Meutya Hafid, makes Indonesia the first country in the world to completely block access to the AI tool. The move follows a growing global backlash after it emerged that Grok’s image-generation feature allowed users to sexualise images using simple text prompts.
“In order to protect women, children, and the public from the risks of fake pornographic content generated using artificial intelligence technology, the government has temporarily blocked access to the Grok application,” Hafid said in an official statement.
She added that the Indonesian government views non-consensual deepfake practices as a grave violation of human rights, personal dignity, and digital security, stressing the need for stronger safeguards in emerging technologies.
Grok, which is integrated with social media platform X (formerly Twitter), had already seen restrictions imposed elsewhere, with its image-generation features limited to paying subscribers following criticism from regulators and digital rights activists. However, Indonesia’s action marks the strongest response so far, cutting off access entirely.
The Communications Ministry has also summoned representatives from X to seek clarification over the safeguards in place and the steps taken to prevent misuse of the technology.
Despite the ban, AFP journalists in Jakarta reported that Grok’s official X account remained active on Saturday evening, continuing to respond to user queries — including in Bahasa Indonesia — raising questions about how comprehensively the suspension has been enforced.
xAI, the Musk-owned company behind Grok, was not immediately available for comment.
The controversy has sparked criticism across Europe, where officials and technology watchdogs argued that restricting access to paying users fails to address the broader risks posed by sexually explicit AI-generated deepfakes.
Responding to the backlash last week, Elon Musk said that users who create illegal content using Grok would face consequences equivalent to those imposed for uploading illegal material directly.
Indonesia’s move comes amid increasing global scrutiny of AI tools capable of generating realistic images, as governments grapple with how to regulate technologies that can be easily misused for exploitation, harassment, and disinformation.