PARIS (Reuters) – In a surprising turn of events, French prosecutors have officially announced the commencement of a mysterious investigation into technology mogul Elon Musk’s social media platform, X, over claims of algorithmic bias. The news of this probe comes just days before a highly anticipated artificial intelligence summit in Paris, set to welcome esteemed global leaders such as U.S. Vice President JD Vance, Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi, and top executives from Alphabet and Microsoft.
The decision to launch this investigation was prompted by a lawmaker’s communication to the Paris prosecutor’s office on January 12, expressing concerns that biased algorithms within X may have improperly influenced the workings of an automated data processing system. Despite these serious allegations, X, formerly known as Twitter, has chosen to remain silent in response to requests for comment on the matter.
This latest development underscores the increasing global apprehension surrounding the dominance and influence of X, the rebranded version of Twitter under Musk’s ownership. Musk’s personal use of X to endorse right-wing political parties and causes in various countries, including Germany and Britain, has raised alarms regarding potential foreign interference in domestic affairs.
French centrist lawmaker Eric Bothorel took to X to disclose his correspondence with the J3 cybercrime unit of the Paris prosecutors’ office, outlining his worries about X’s alleged utilization of biased algorithms, as reported by Franceinfo. The Paris public prosecutor’s office has confirmed that prosecutors and specialized experts from the cybercrime unit are currently examining the situation and conducting preliminary technical assessments.
“I submitted a formal letter to the cyber J3 prosecutor’s office regarding this issue on January 12,” Bothorel stated on X. Notably, the J3 unit of the Paris prosecutors’ office gained notoriety last year for spearheading the investigation into Telegram CEO Pavel Durov, who was apprehended upon his arrival at a Paris airport. Durov, who is presently out on bail, vehemently refutes the accusations against him, although Telegram has since expressed its cooperation with law enforcement to eliminate illicit content from its platform.
The J3 unit has demonstrated a readiness to leverage innovative and stringent laws to target the proprietors of major online platforms. X itself faced a temporary ban in Brazil last year due to its failure to curb the dissemination of misinformation, eventually complying with a Supreme Court directive that facilitated the platform’s restoration.
(Reporting by Dominique Vidalon; Editing by Benoit Van Overstraeten, Alexander Smith, and David Gregorio)
