Baltimore City has filed a lawsuit against X (formerly Twitter) over its generative AI system Grok, alleging violations of the city’s Consumer Protection Ordinance. The suit claims Grok enables users to create and share non-consensual, sexualized deepfake images, including those involving minors, causing serious privacy violations, harassment, and psychological harm. Baltimore officials emphasize that the technology lacks adequate safeguards, age verification, or content controls, and that X monetized risky features through paid subscriptions despite widespread abuse.

City leaders argue that Baltimore is among the first municipalities to use consumer protection laws to address the harms caused by AI-generated deepfakes, aiming to hold tech companies accountable and protect residents from emerging threats to privacy and public safety. The lawsuit highlights the need for stronger regulation as AI technology evolves rapidly, with Baltimore positioning itself as a national leader in confronting these novel legal and ethical challenges.