The former president of Switzerland filed a criminal complaint against one of Elon Musk's companies
Former Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter, now the country's finance minister, has filed a criminal complaint for defamation and insult after a user of the social network “X” published an obscene message about her created by Elon Musk's Grok chatbot, a Swiss government spokesman said on Wednesday, quoted by Reuters.
On March 10, an “X” user asked Grok, in German, to perform a so-called “roast” — a broader ironic insult — using vulgar language about Keller-Sutter, who led Switzerland last year as part of the country's rotating presidency.
The message generated by Grok contained vulgar expressions about the minister and her work, after which the chatbot asked the user if he wanted something more extreme or to target another person as well.
A spokesman for the Swiss finance ministry said on Wednesday that Swiss prosecutors should investigate whether those responsible at “X” made Grok available knowingly or even with the intention that the technology be used to commit crimes, or whether they breached their duty of care.
“X” did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Reuters.
The criminal complaint concerns employees of “X”
The Swiss government spokesman added that the user had deleted his Grok conversation and message by March 12.
The user told Swiss daily Tages-Anzeiger, which first reported on the trial, that his gesture was a “harmless technical exercise” to see what Grok could do.
But a spokesman for the finance ministry said Keller-Sutter filed the lawsuit against to defend the reputation of the Federal Council, the country's governing body, and to take a stand against misogyny.
Under Swiss law, any person responsible for publication who intentionally fails to prevent the spread of offensive material may be liable to a criminal fine or up to three years in prison.
Theoretically, the complaint could also target xAI, the artificial intelligence company founded by Elon Musk in 2023.
The former Swiss president has previously drawn Trump's ire
Keller-Sutter made waves in the Swiss media last year because of the strained relationship with US President Donald Trump, who after a joint phone call imposed the highest tariffs on Switzerland in Europe.
Trump said in January at the World Economic Forum in Davos that she “irritated him so much” because of her insistence that Switzerland not be penalized with high tariffs.
Reuters also recalls that a Dutch court last week ordered xAI, the artificial intelligence company that created Grok, to stop the AI tool from generating and distributing images that “undress” adults or children or show them in sexualized poses with scanty or no clothes.
