French authorities escalated pressure on social media platform X this week, carrying out searches at its offices as part of a widening investigation tied to alleged online abuses involving minors, deepfakes, and extremist content. Prosecutors said Tuesday that the Paris cybercrime unit is examining whether X played a role in possessing or distributing child sexual abuse material, sexually explicit deepfakes, and other illegal content. Billionaire owner Elon Musk has been summoned for questioning, alongside former X chief executive Linda Yaccarino.
According to Associated Press, the investigation, opened in January last year, also looks at possible manipulation of automated data processing systems and the denial of crimes against humanity. Prosecutors said the case expanded after concerns tied to Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Musk’s company xAI and made available through X.
Grok drew global backlash after generating sexualized, nonconsensual deepfake images and controversial posts related to the Holocaust. In one widely shared message written in French, the chatbot falsely described gas chambers at Auschwitz-Birkenau as being intended for disinfection rather than mass murder. Later posts reversed that claim, acknowledging the earlier response was wrong and pointing to historical evidence that Zyklon B was used to kill more than one million people.
Prosecutors have asked Musk and Yaccarino to attend what they described as “voluntary interviews” on April 20. Employees of X have also been summoned as witnesses. Yaccarino led the company from May 2023 until July 2025.
A spokesperson for X did not respond to repeated requests for comment. The company’s French lawyer, Kami Haeri, told The Associated Press: “We are not making any comment at this stage.”
In a public message posted on X, the Paris prosecutors’ office confirmed the searches and said it was leaving the platform, encouraging followers to connect on other social networks.
“At this stage, the conduct of the investigation is based on a constructive approach, with the aim of ultimately ensuring that the X platform complies with French law, as it operates on the national territory,” the prosecutors’ statement said.
European police agency Europol confirmed it is supporting French authorities. Parallel probes are also underway in Britain and across the European Union, where regulators are examining whether X and xAI violated data protection and digital safety rules tied to Grok’s deployment.
