In late 2025, social media platform X introduced an image editing feature through its AI chatbot "Grok." Users could mention and input commands on photos posted by others to have AI modify images — instantly enabling deletion of people in photos, changes to clothing, insertion of new objects — forming a trend that quickly spread as playful meme entertainment.
Representative examples of meme play included having AI carry out instructions like "erase the ugly person" or "remove the pedophile." For example, there was a case where AI removed Trump from a photo of former President Trump and singer Diddy. Users transferred judgment responsibility to AI while sharing controversial humor, and Elon Musk even posted an image of himself in a bikini, joining the meme. Quirky composites like putting a bikini on a toaster also gained popularity.
However, cases also emerged of female users'' selfies being composited with bikinis without consent, and creators'' artwork being edited mockingly without permission. The limitation that AI defense tools like Nightshade cannot block real-time editing was revealed, and some artists left X.
There are also cases of voluntarily editing and sharing one''s own images. Some adult content creators and general users consumed their own photos through sexual editing as a form of play — viewable as freedom of expression, but problematic given the reality of the same function being misused for non-consensual compositing.
The AI image editing trend revealed creative possibilities alongside ethical and legal limits. AI is a tool rather than a judgment subject, but users can indirectly insult or harm others through it. France, the UK, India, and others have begun reviewing regulations on this, and the EU is also preparing a large AI regulation. Platforms must now introduce more sophisticated safety measures including consent-based editing, automatic watermark insertion, and preemptive blocking. While the combination of AI and SNS is an irreversible trend, social consensus and responsible design are required to ensure technological freedom does not infringe on others'' rights.
