European and American technology regulation battles escalated sharply on Tuesday, February 3. The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed that French police conducted a raid on the local office of the social media platform X. At the same time, prosecutors have formally summoned Elon Musk, the actual controller of X, and former CEO to attend a hearing on April 20.
The Paris prosecutor’s cybercrime unit stated on Tuesday that this action stemmed from an investigation into bias in X algorithms at the beginning of 2025. However, the case has significantly expanded, focusing on X’s AI chatbot, Grok.
Prosecutors are investigating whether the platform is involved in disseminating inappropriate images of children and infringing on portrait rights through technology. French officials stated that they have summoned Musk, former X CEO Linda Yaccarino, and other employees for “voluntary” interviews.
In protest, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced its formal withdrawal from the X platform and shifted official communications to LinkedIn and Instagram.
Musk promptly launched a counterattack on the X platform, turning the legal dispute into a battle for freedom of speech. The world’s richest man posted early Tuesday morning Eastern Time, stating that France’s actions were “politically-motivated retaliation” and mocking the French prosecutors for avoiding free debate, calling it “ideological blackmail.”
X’s global government affairs team released a statement questioning the “legitimacy” of France’s evidence-gathering methods and emphasizing that the charges related to Grok are “completely lacking technical basis,” accusing France of attempting “political censorship.”
The US House Judiciary Committee released a report on Tuesday titled “Foreign Censorship Threat,” accusing the European Union’s executive body, the European Commission, of conducting a “global censorship movement” that “will affect what American citizens can say and see online within the United States.” The committee plans to hold a hearing on this matter on Wednesday.
In December of last year, the EU fined X 120 million euros for issues such as the misleading nature of its “blue checkmark” design. Former US Secretary of State Pompeo posted on X at the time, stating that this fine was not just targeted at X but was an “attack by a foreign government on all American tech platforms and the American people.”
In July of last year, French prosecutors initiated a criminal investigation into X for alleged “algorithmic bias” and “foreign interference.” The US State Department criticized France’s actions as an attempt by “radical prosecutors” to designate X as an “organized crime group,” warning that this would undermine democratic values.
The European Commission stated that its Digital Services Act launched in February 2024 supports freedom of speech. A spokesperson stated on Tuesday, “We defend freedom of speech. Any accusations that Europe does not protect freedom of speech or engages in censorship are baseless.”
X belongs to Musk’s artificial intelligence company, xAI, which has since been acquired by his aerospace company, SpaceX, integrating AI capabilities with a global satellite communication network. SpaceX plans to go public for the first time in June, with an estimated staggering valuation of $15 trillion, becoming the largest IPO in financial history.