Paris prosecutors raided X's French offices on February 3 as part of a criminal investigation into content moderation failures on the platform. Elon Musk and X CEO Linda Yaccarino have been summoned to appear at hearings in April.
The probe, led by Paris's cyber-crime unit, focuses on three areas: sexual deepfakes generated by X's Grok AI tool, child sexual abuse material, and Holocaust denial content. The investigation follows complaints about Grok producing sexualized images despite recent content restrictions Musk claimed would prevent such outputs.
This marks the second European investigation into Grok's image generation capabilities. UK regulators opened a separate probe into the AI tool's production of sexualized images. Reuters reporting confirmed Grok continues producing such content even after new guardrails were implemented.
The raid comes as European regulators escalate enforcement against X. The European Commission has opened four separate investigations into Musk's platforms. France's action represents the most aggressive move yet, with prosecutors using criminal investigative powers rather than regulatory proceedings.
The timing is notable: X has faced mounting pressure in Europe over content moderation since Musk's acquisition. The platform reduced its trust and safety teams significantly, a decision that's drawn scrutiny from regulators concerned about illegal content proliferation.
For enterprise leaders evaluating AI deployment, the investigation highlights regulatory risk around generative AI tools. What works in one jurisdiction may trigger criminal liability in another. Grok's troubles demonstrate that technical guardrails often lag behind regulatory expectations, particularly in the EU where content liability rules are stricter than in the US.
X hasn't commented on the raid. Musk and Yaccarino's April appearance will test whether X faces criminal charges or can address concerns through compliance measures. The outcome will signal how aggressively European prosecutors will pursue platform executives personally, not just their companies.