Prime Minister Keir Starmer visited a community centre in Putney, southwest London, on Monday
CARLOS JASSOThe UK government said Monday that it would include AI chatbots in online safety laws, closing a loophole exposed after Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok was used to create sexualised deepfakes.
Providers of chatbots will be responsible for preventing them from generating illegal or harmful content, extending rules that currently apply only to content shared between users on social media.
It follows an international backlash against Grok for letting people create and share sexualised pictures of women and children using simple text prompts.
"The new measures announced today include crackdown on vile illegal content created by AI," Prime Minister Keir Starmer said in a statement ahead of a speech on the matter Monday.
"The government will move fast to shut a legal loophole and force all AI chatbot providers to abide by illegal content duties in the Online Safety Act or face the consequences of breaking the law," he said.
Under the Online Safety Act, which entered force in July, platforms hosting potentially harmful content are required to implement strict age verification through tools such as facial imagery or credit card checks.
It is also illegal for sites to create or share non-consensual intimate images, or child sexual abuse material, including sexual deepfakes created with AI.
In January, Britain's media regulator Ofcom opened a probe into the social media platform X, which hosts Grok, for failing to meet its safety obligations.
The country's data watchdog has launched a wider investigation into Musk's X and xAI -- which developed the Grok AI tool -- to see whether the companies complied with personal data law when it came to Grok's generation of sexualised deepfakes.
Ofcom has noted that not all AI chatbots are regulated under the Online Safety Act, including those which "only allow people to interact with the chatbot itself and no other users".
"Technology moves on so quickly that the legislation struggles to keep up, which is why, for AI bots... we need to take the necessary measures," Starmer said.
His Labour government is ramping up efforts to protect children online, having launched a consultation on a social media ban for those under the age of 16, while considering measures to limit features like infinite scrolling on social media.
In January 2025, Starmer pledged to ease red tape to attract billions of pounds of AI investment and help Britain become an "AI superpower".
ajb/bcp/js
Originally published on doc.afp.com, part of the BLOX Digital Content Exchange.
Information from the News and our advertisers (Want to add your business to this to this feed?)
Success! An email has been sent to with a link to confirm list signup.
Error! There was an error processing your request.
Sign up to receive notifications when a new Columbia Gorge News e-Edition is published.
Would you like to receive our news updates? Signup today!
Receive weekly updates on obituaries and death notices.
Oregon Capital Press presented by Columbia Gorge News
Receive updates on upcoming promotions and special sections.
Receive weekly updates on local sports news.
Sorry, there are no recent results for popular videos.
Sorry, an error occurred.
Already Subscribed!
Cancel anytime
Thank you .
Your account has been registered, and you are now logged in.
Check your email for details.
Submitting this form below will send a message to your email with a link to change your password.
An email message containing instructions on how to reset your password has been sent to the email address listed on your account.
No promotional rates found.
Secure & Encrypted
Thank you.
Your gift purchase was successful! Your purchase was successful, and you are now logged in.
| Rate: | |
| Begins: | |
| Transaction ID: |
A receipt was sent to your email.
Commented