French police conducted a raid at the Paris office of the social media platform X (formerly Twitter), owned by Elon Musk. The operation is part of a criminal investigation related to the AI chatbot Grok, which is integrated into the platform and has been at the center of several high-profile scandals in recent months (we wrote about one of the scandals here).
According to the Paris Public Prosecutor’s Office, the raids were carried out by its cybercrime unit in cooperation with Europol. French authorities emphasized that the law enforcement actions are part of a so-called “constructive approach” aimed at ensuring that the X platform complies with French law, as it operates within the country and serves French users.
Pool photo by Shawn Thew via EPA / February 3, 2026 11:12 am CET/ By Mathieu Pollet
The investigation was officially opened last month following a wave of sexually explicit deepfakes generated by Grok and disseminated through X. This case is a logical continuation of a previous probe initiated last summer after the chatbot was involved in a series of antisemitic statements that provoked a strong public and human rights response.
The situation was further complicated by recent research indicating that Grok could have generated up to three million sexualized images in just 11 days in January. Alarmingly, about 23,000 of these images were estimated to involve children. This aspect became a key factor prompting French authorities to take active investigative measures.
As part of the investigation, Elon Musk, as the owner of X, and former CEO Linda Yaccarino were summoned for so-called “voluntary interviews” scheduled for April 20. The prosecutor’s office stressed that at this stage no charges have been filed, but the investigation considers a wide range of potential violations, including the dissemination of sexually explicit deepfakes, facilitating the spread of child sexual abuse material, and publishing content related to Holocaust denial.
Alongside the actions of French authorities, pressure on X is also increasing at the European level. The European Commission has opened a new investigation under the EU’s rules for online platforms and is simultaneously exploring the possibility of stricter measures under the European AI law, including the potential banning of specific apps or functions if deemed systemically dangerous or non-compliant with user protection standards.
At the time of publication, X had not provided an official comment regarding the raids and the investigation. This silence only heightens tension around the situation, as the case touches on several sensitive issues — AI regulation, child protection, combating extremist and illegal content, and the limits of responsibility for tech platforms and their owners.
Overall, the events in France may set an important precedent for all of Europe. For the first time, a major social media platform and its associated AI tool are under such close criminal and legal scrutiny, not only for user content but also for the consequences of algorithmic operations. For X and Elon Musk personally, the case risks turning from a local regulatory conflict into a systemic test of the entire “free platform” model under increasingly strict European oversight.
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