Cruz’s Legislation Targets Deepfakes on X

Senator Ted Cruz (R-Texas) is credited with spearheading a bill that aims to curb deepfake content on platforms like X. The legislation, introduced in early 2025, is known as the “Take It Down Act” and seeks to prevent the distribution of “intimate visual depictions of individuals,” regardless of whether they’re real images or generated by computers.

Cruz stated, “These illegal images should be removed and guardrails should be put in place.”

As reported by the BBC, the AI tool Grok has been known to, quite controversially, edit images to strip someone of their clothing. This kind of content has become widespread on the platform, affecting even minors, raising significant concerns from various advocacy groups.

In an effort to address these issues, X’s owner, Elon Musk, announced punitive measures against users who exploit Grok for unlawful content creation. Musk mentioned that “Those who use Grok to create illegal content will suffer the same consequences as if they had uploaded illegal content.”

Following Musk’s announcement, X’s safety team declared it would implement actions against illegal content, including the potential permanent suspension of accounts and collaboration with law enforcement.

Amidst Cruz’s advocacy for tackling illegal images online, he faced odd instances where users attempted to leverage Grok against him. One such instance included a request for Grok to produce an image of Cruz kneeling before Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Other generated images included inappropriate depictions of Cruz in various states of undress or in attire typically not associated with him.

In a twist, Cruz himself later shared an AI-generated video that humorously depicted former President Trump trying to persuade Nicolás Maduro, although Cruz’s content doesn’t seem to fall under the “intimate visual depictions” that the bill targets, thus likely escaping any legal contradictions.

Meanwhile, X has reportedly limited AI-based image editing features to only paying users, a move that may influence the platform’s handling of generated content moving forward.

Conversations around the implications of these deepfake technologies are heating up worldwide, with figures like British Prime Minister Keir Starmer advocating for serious consideration of legal penalties concerning such digital manipulations.