Feb 3, 2026, 12:06 p.mFeb 3, 2026, 3:17 p.m
A big bang in the French investigations against Elon Musk’s online platform X: The Paris justice system has had the platform’s premises in France searched.
As part of ongoing investigations against the social network, summonses were also sent to the tech billionaire and former X managing director Linda Yaccarino for questioning in the French capital on April 20, the Paris public prosecutor’s office said. Employees of the European police authority Europol were also present during the search.
Criticism of algorithms
The Paris public prosecutor’s office has been investigating X for around a year because of allegations that algorithms in the social network were changed to give more attention to right-wing extremist content.
There have also recently been allegations of Holocaust denial and sexualized images. This involves images of women and children created by the AI chatbot Grok, so-called deepfakes. Deepfakes are videos, images or audio files created with the help of AI that appear deceptively real, but are not.
Musk should present measures
The investigation took a constructive approach and aimed to ensure that Platform X operated in France in accordance with French law, said Paris prosecutor Laure Beccuau.
The summons to Musk and Yaccarino should give them the opportunity to present their position and, if necessary, the planned measures to comply with the regulations.
Summons versus interrogation
The public prosecutor’s decision to summon Musk and the ex-director to a free hearing is a comparatively cautious step for an interrogation in France. A suspect is not taken into police custody for the duration of his interrogation and can leave the interrogation site at any time of his own free will. Witnesses also have the opportunity to be questioned freely.
The public prosecutor’s office did not specify what status Musk and Yaccarino have in the investigation. Both would be summoned in their capacity as de facto and legal directors of Platform X at the time of the allegations. The public prosecutor added that employees of the platform should also be summoned as witnesses from April 20th to 24th.
No reaction from X yet
When asked, Platform Last summer, X had already accused the French authorities of “a politically motivated criminal investigation” in a long statement and categorically rejected all allegations. The investigations threatened “our users’ rights to privacy and freedom of expression.” X is committed to defending its fundamental rights, protecting user data and “resisting political censorship”.
Recently, the EU also increased the pressure on Platform X. In the course of investigations, the EU Commission asked the US company at the beginning of the year not to destroy internal documents on the artificial intelligence Grok, but to keep them until the end of the year.
There are doubts as to whether the company adheres to European digital laws. An EU Commission spokesman emphasized at the beginning of January: “We have observed how Grok has generated anti-Semitic content and, more recently, sexual depictions of children. This is illegal. This is unacceptable.”
Deactivating Grok in the EU is not the aim of the EU Commission and is more of a last resort. “We are not here to tell citizens which platform is safer or better to use,” the spokesman said.
Other countries are also investigating – Trump speaks of censorship
Several investigations and proceedings are already underway against Musk’s Platform X based on European digital laws. It was only at the beginning of December that the EU imposed a fine of 120 million euros on Musk’s online platform for lack of transparency.
The US company could face further penalties. The European internet watchdogs have also been targeting X since December 2023 because the platform is suspected of not doing enough against illegal content or disinformation.
In view of the investigations that have been ongoing for years, critics have long accused the EU of not enforcing its digital rules consistently enough. At the same time, the US government of President Donald Trump claims that Brussels is practicing censorship.
Shortly before Christmas, Washington imposed entry bans on former EU Commissioner Thierry Breton and other Europeans in response to European measures. Breton is an architect of EU digital laws.
Meanwhile, in Great Britain, the data protection commissioner opened an investigation into sexualized images and videos by the AI chatbot Grok on the X platform. The move follows reports of Grok creating such images without the consent of those affected, including children, said a statement from the Information Commissioner’s Office (ICO). British Prime Minister Keir Starmer had previously harshly condemned the images. «That’s a shame. It’s disgusting. And it must not be tolerated.”
There are currently no comparable investigations against Grok in Germany. After a dpa request, the Federal Network Agency referred to the responsibilities. The supervisory person at the provider’s headquarters in the EU – in the case of X, Ireland – and the EU Commission are responsible for X. Information about illegal content would be forwarded there, it was said. (awp/sda/dpa)