The European Commission will launch formal legal proceedings on Monday against Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s xAI and integrated into the social media platform X.
The action, reported by Handelsblatt citing high-ranking EU officials, marks a significant escalation in Brussels’ attempt to rein in Musk’s technology empire.
The proceedings fall under the Digital Services Act (DSA), the bloc’s sweeping regulation designed to police online content and safety.
According to the report, the measures are intended to compel xAI to withdraw Grok from the European Union entirely unless stringent compliance demands are met.
The probe follows a series of high-profile scandals in early 2026 involving the chatbot’s "spicy" mode, which users reportedly exploited to generate sexualized deepfakes of minors and public figures.
EU digital spokesperson Thomas Regnier recently characterized such outputs as "illegal" and "appalling," stressing that the commission is examining the platform’s systemic failures to mitigate these risks.
The commission has already used its DSA powers to order X to preserve all internal documents and data related to Grok through the end of 2026.
This weekend’s development suggests that regulators are moving beyond evidence preservation toward punitive enforcement.
Under the DSA, companies found in breach of safety obligations can face fines of up to 6% of their global annual turnover.
The move comes just months after the EU issued a landmark €120 million ($130 million) fine against X in December 2025 for deceptive design practices and transparency failures.
Musk, who has frequently clashed with EU regulators over free speech and moderation, has previously characterized European oversight as "censorship."
Should the commission pursue a market withdrawal, it would represent the most aggressive use of the DSA to date, effectively creating a "digital border" between the EU and the AI services available to the rest of the world.