X responsible for controversial content of AI tool ‘Grok’; Big claim by government sources amid controversy

New Delhi| Social media platform X (formerly Twitter) may be responsible for all content created by its Artificial Intelligence (AI) tool Groc. According to a government source, a legal opinion on the matter will be decided soon. Recently, some users asked Groc questions involving Indian leaders on X, the answers to which were found controversial at times. The source said that the Ministry of Electronics and IT is in talks with social media platform X in this regard so that the way it works can be understood and assessed.

IT Ministry did not send any notice to Grok-X
Meanwhile, government sources claimed that the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology has given big information regarding X or Grok. The ministry has said that it has not sent any notice to Grok or X. The ministry is in talks with X and Grok. Officials from the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology are talking to X officials and investigating at what level Indian law has been violated.

Government’s strictness and old matters
Last year, Google’s AI tool Gemini had made objectionable comments on Prime Minister Narendra Modi, following which the government took immediate action and issued new guidelines on AI content. A government source said that guidelines regarding content are already in force on social media and it is important for companies to follow them.

Case in Ex vs. Government of India – Court
Earlier today, X, a company owned by Grok AI, has filed a suit against the Government of India in the Karnataka High Court regarding Section 79 (3) of the IT Act. The company says that the government is using this section to arbitrarily block content, which is against the decision of the Supreme Court. It has been claimed on behalf of X that a content should be blocked under Section 69A itself, but the government is creating a parallel system, which is against the law.

Section 79: Responsibility of social media platforms
Section 79 (1) of the IT Act protects social media platforms for content posted on behalf of their users. But under Section 79 (3), if a platform does not remove objectionable content despite orders from the government, it may face legal action. If a platform does not remove content within 36 hours, it is at risk of losing ‘Safe Harbor’ security and could stand trial under other laws, including the IPC.