The Philippines will lift its ban on Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot after developer xAI agreed to restrict features that allowed the creation of sexualised deepfakes, the country’s Cybercrime Investigation and Coordinating Center (CICC) said on Wednesday.
The chatbot had been blocked on January 15, making the Philippines the third Southeast Asian country to take such action after Indonesia and Malaysia, as governments across the region responded to growing concern over misuse of generative tools. Authorities said Grok had been capable of producing manipulated images and explicit material, raising alarms about online safety and child protection.
In a statement, the CICC said xAI had committed to adjusting Grok for the Philippine market and removing functions linked to image and content manipulation. CICC undersecretary Renato Paraiso said the company had assured regulators that the platform would no longer allow the creation of deepfake material.
“The company has pledged to modify the tool specifically for the local market, including the omission of image and content manipulation features that allowed for deepfake creation,” the statement said.
The revisions will also include what officials described as the “total exclusion of pornographic content,” with particular emphasis on preventing any material linked to child sexual abuse. A formal meeting between Philippine authorities and xAI is expected to set a timeline for Grok’s reinstatement.
The announcement follows moves by Musk’s social media platform X to restrict access to certain image-generation features. Last week, X said it would geoblock the ability of users to create images of people in bikinis, underwear and similar attire in jurisdictions where such content is prohibited by law.
The Philippine government welcomed the changes as a step toward stronger digital safeguards. At a press briefing last week, Telecommunications Secretary Henry Rhoel Aguda said the country needed to “clean the internet now” as harmful and misleading material continued to spread, especially with the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence tools.
International pressure has also been mounting on xAI. California’s attorney general recently opened an investigation into the platform over concerns related to sexually explicit content, while regulators in several other countries have launched their own inquiries.
Officials in Manila said the Grok case highlighted the challenge facing governments as technology advances faster than regulation. While the Philippines aims to support innovation, authorities stressed that public safety and child protection must remain the priority.
Once Grok is reinstated, the CICC said it will continue to monitor the platform closely to ensure compliance with local laws. Any breach of the agreed safeguards could result in renewed restrictions.
For now, Philippine regulators said they expect the updated version of Grok to reflect the country’s standards on online responsibility, while allowing users to access the chatbot in a more controlled and secure environment.
