The Irish Data Protection Commission (DPC) announced today that it is advancing an investigation into X’s use of public posts made by European Union (EU) users to train its artificial intelligence (AI) tool Grok. The probe will assess whether the processing of personal data, taken from publicly available posts on the Elon Musk-owned social media platform, complies with the European Union’s data protection laws.
The investigation will specifically focus on X’s Irish arm, XIUC, and its handling of personal data for the purpose of training generative AI models, including the Grok large language models. The DPC will review whether this data processing adheres to key provisions of the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR), which governs the legality and transparency of such practices.
As part of the inquiry, the DPC will examine a range of issues surrounding the use of public posts and personal data, ensuring that X’s actions align with the EU’s strict data protection standards. The Commission has stressed the importance of assessing whether X’s practices before the suspension of data processing were lawful.
X, formerly known as Twitter, is facing scrutiny after it suspended its efforts to train Grok on personal data extracted from EU users’ public posts in September, following an urgent legal proceeding initiated by the DPC. While the regulator welcomed this decision, the new investigation seeks to determine if the personal data used in the development of Grok’s models before the halt was processed in accordance with EU privacy laws.
This move marks the latest development in a broader trend of heightened regulatory scrutiny over the use of AI technologies by U.S. tech giants. The European Union has been taking a firm stance on AI governance, with ongoing investigations into major players like Google, Meta, and OpenAI. These efforts reflect the EU’s ambition to enforce its comprehensive AI laws while safeguarding individual privacy and data rights across industries.
The Irish Data Protection Commission continues to play a central role in regulating tech companies operating within the EU, ensuring that their AI initiatives comply with the GDPR and other relevant regulations. The outcome of this investigation into X’s use of public posts for training Grok’s AI models will further shape the evolving landscape of AI policy in Europe.
For further information, please contact: Irish Data Protection Commission [Contact Information]
