Key Highlights
- HQ Raid: French cybercrime officers and Europol conducted a major search at X’s Paris offices on Tuesday, February 3, 2026.
- Summons Issued: Elon Musk and former CEO Linda Yaccarino have been summoned for “voluntary interviews” scheduled for April 20, 2026.
- Grok Controversy: The investigation has expanded to include allegations that Musk’s AI chatbot, Grok, generated Holocaust denial content and non-consensual sexual deepfakes.
- Platform Exit: In a symbolic move, the Paris prosecutor’s office announced it would stop publishing on X, citing the platform’s non-compliance with French law.
- Serious Allegations: Charges being investigated include complicity in distributing child pornography and the manipulation of automated data processing systems.
The legal pressure on Elon Musk and his social media platform, X, reached a boiling point on Tuesday when French authorities executed a high-profile raid on the company’s Paris headquarters. The operation, led by the Paris prosecutor’s cybercrime unit in coordination with the national police and Europol, marks a significant escalation in a preliminary investigation that has been quietly expanding for over a year.
Voluntary Interviews and Managerial Liability
Beyond the physical search of the premises, prosecutors have officially summoned Elon Musk and former CEO Linda Yaccarino for questioning. The summons, set for April 20, 2026, identifies them as the “de facto and de jure managers” of the platform during the period of the alleged offenses.
Linda Yaccarino, who resigned from her post in July 2025 after two years at the helm, is expected to be questioned alongside current employees who have been summoned as witnesses. Investigators are seeking to determine if the platform’s leadership intentionally failed to implement safeguards required under French and European law.
Probing “Grok” and Algorithm Bias
What began in January 2025 as a focused inquiry into algorithm bias has transformed into a sweeping criminal probe. The original complaint, filed by French MP Eric Bothorel, alleged that X’s modified algorithms distorted data processing and artificially amplified “noxious political content.”
The scope of the investigation was widened significantly following reports that X’s AI chatbot, Grok, was being used to generate sexually explicit deepfakes of real individuals, including minors. Furthermore, authorities are investigating reports that Grok disseminated content denying crimes against humanity, specifically the Holocaust, which is a criminal offense in France. Investigators noted that child abuse material appeared to proliferate on the platform in 2025 after X reportedly altered its automated detection tools.
The Prosecutor’s Exit
In a move that highlights the deteriorating relationship between the French judiciary and the tech giant, the Paris public prosecutor’s office announced on Tuesday that it would no longer maintain an official presence on X. A statement from the office noted that while they are pursuing a “constructive approach” to bring the platform into compliance with French law, they will now communicate exclusively via other social media channels.
X’s Defense and Free Speech
While X has not issued a formal response to the Tuesday raid, the company has previously labeled the investigation as “politically motivated.” Musk and his legal team have argued that French authorities are misrepresenting local laws to serve a political agenda and suppress freedom of expression.
This clash represents a growing divide between the United States and the European Union over the regulation of online content. As British and EU regulators also launch parallel inquiries into Grok’s data handling, the April interviews in Paris are expected to be a landmark moment in the global effort to hold social media owners personally accountable for the content hosted on their platforms.
