Elon Musk's Grok Imagine Slammed for Creating Taylor Swift Deepfakes in 'Spicy' Mode Scandal

Elon Musk's new xAI tool, Grok Imagine, is facing fierce backlash after reports claimed it had been used to generate non-consensual deepfakes of Taylor Swift. The AI-powered image and video generator, launched in early beta, includes a controversial 'Spicy' mode that strips away most content filters, and it is already at the centre of a storm.

According to The Verge, tests showed Grok Imagine could create more than 30 images of Swift in suggestive outfits from nothing more than a mild prompt referencing Coachella. When 'Spicy' mode was switched on, the system reportedly produced a video of a Swift lookalike stripping and dancing in a thong without the user providing any explicit instructions. Critics say it exposes alarming weaknesses in Grok's content moderation, particularly given X (formerly Twitter) has already faced scandals over similar abuse.

Taylor Swift's History With AI

Despite growing outrage online, Musk has so far stayed silent. Grok Imagine is currently available only to SuperGrok and Premium Plus subscribers on X, but experts warn its features could be exploited to target celebrities and ordinary users alike. The scandal raises urgent questions about AI ethics, consent and platform responsibility in an era where synthetic media can be created at the click of a button.