UK Politician Jess Asato Got Deepfaked. Now She’s Taking xAI to Court
British Labour MP Jess Asato is taking legal action against Elon Musk's xAI company after becoming a victim of deepfake abuse involving Grok, the company's chatbot.
Jess Asato's public campaigning against deepfake technology put her in an ironic position when she became a victim of the very abuse she had been fighting. The British Labour MP is now pursuing legal action against Elon Musk's xAI company after Grok, its chatbot, was used to generate sexually explicit and degrading deepfake images of her.
The disturbing images included one depicting a sexual assault scenario, showing Asato being chloroformed by a group of men. When Asato reported the content to X, the platform repeatedly dismissed her complaints. This led her to take legal action against xAI, arguing it unlawfully used her image without consent.
Background and Advocacy
Before entering Parliament, Asato spent years working with charities supporting survivors of domestic abuse and vulnerable children. This experience shaped her political career, informing her push for stronger protections for women and children online. She had been working with deepfake victims for years before the Grok scandal emerged.
Asato explained that nudification—using AI to create nude or pornographic images of real people—has been a known harm affecting women and children. She noted that many AI tools had already implemented safeguards to prevent such content, making Grok's capabilities particularly troubling.
This was completely avoidable. That's why I spoke out, but also because I'd just spent a year and a half campaigning to get a ban on nudification apps, and here was an all-purpose AI tool becoming a nudification app.
Parliamentary Response
After the Grok scandal became public in early 2026, Asato raised the issue in the House of Commons. Her intervention led to the government accelerating its ban on nudification apps through the Crime and Policing Act. She also successfully advocated for bringing all AI chatbots under the Online Safety Act.
The legislation requires AI tools to prevent the creation of non-consensual intimate images and establishes accountability frameworks for AI companies. However, Asato noted that implementation would require consultation, leaving potential gaps for similar incidents before the measures take full effect.
Personal Impact and Legal Action
After Asato publicly criticized Musk over Grok's capabilities, she became a target herself. The generated images included her in a bikini with altered features, as well as degrading scenarios like being pregnant with quintuplets in a kitchen. The most disturbing content depicted a sexual assault scenario.
Despite reporting the content to X, the platform repeatedly rejected removal requests. Only after Asato engaged a lawyer were the images taken down. Her legal team determined that xAI had likely broken the law by using her image without consent, prompting the current lawsuit.
For Asato, this case represents a broader question about consent in the age of AI and whether companies can be held accountable for harms caused by their products. She views the legal action not just as personal redress but as a potential precedent for future cases involving AI-generated abuse.
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