The investigation, announced Sept. 8 by Coimisiún na Meán, is the regulator’s first formal investigation under Ireland’s Online Safety Code. The regulator said its Platform Supervision team had raised concerns about the effectiveness of X’s age-assurance mechanisms.

The inquiry will also examine whether X’s parental controls are effective, sufficiently accessible and properly presented to users when they create an account. The investigation does not establish that X has violated the code; the regulator will determine whether the platform is complying with its obligations.

Regulator questions X’s age checks

Under Ireland’s Online Safety Code, platforms accessible to children that provide adult-only video content must use effective age-assurance measures to prevent children from normally accessing pornography and extreme or gratuitous violence.

Coimisiún na Meán said age assurance based solely on users declaring their own age is not considered effective under the code. The investigation will therefore assess whether X has measures capable of meeting the required standard.

The regulator’s action is focused specifically on the platform’s compliance with these child-safety requirements. It is not a finding that individual children have accessed prohibited material on X.

Parental controls also under scrutiny

The investigation will separately assess X’s parental-control systems.

Coimisiún na Meán said X allows adult-only content while also allowing children under 16 to use the service. Under the Online Safety Code, platforms in that position must provide parental controls that allow parents and guardians to influence the content their children encounter.

The regulator identified several areas of concern. It will examine whether X’s controls are effective, whether they contain the minimum functions required by the code, whether users are adequately directed to them and whether they are offered as an option when new accounts are created.

The inquiry therefore covers both the technical question of age assurance and the practical ability of parents or guardians to manage children’s exposure to content.

First investigation under Ireland’s Online Safety Code

The case marks the first formal investigation launched by Coimisiún na Meán under Ireland’s Online Safety Code.

The regulator said it has also opened five investigations during the past year under the European Union’s Digital Services Act involving platforms established in Ireland, while participating in four joint investigations led by the European Commission.

The distinction is significant because Ireland has become an important regulatory base for major technology companies operating in the European Union.

Coimisiún na Meán is responsible for enforcing Ireland’s Online Safety Code, while other regulatory authorities in Ireland and at the EU level have separate responsibilities under data-protection and digital-services laws.

X could face significant financial penalties

If the investigation finds that X violated the Online Safety Code, Coimisiún na Meán can impose an administrative financial sanction.

The regulator said penalties can include a fine of up to 10% of a platform’s relevant annual turnover or €20 million, whichever is greater.

The investigation will first establish whether the platform’s practices comply with the specific requirements under examination. Any enforcement action would follow that process.

Wider scrutiny of children’s online safety

The Irish investigation adds to growing regulatory attention on how large social-media platforms verify users’ ages and protect children from harmful content.

Ireland’s regulator said its Online Safety Code was designed to require platforms accessible to children to implement safeguards where adult-only content is available. It also said parents and guardians should have effective and accessible tools to shape children’s online experiences.

X is facing separate regulatory scrutiny in Europe. Ireland’s Data Protection Commission opened an inquiry into X Internet Unlimited Company in February over the processing of personal data associated with the platform’s Grok artificial-intelligence service.

The new investigation is distinct from that data-protection inquiry and focuses on X’s compliance with Ireland’s Online Safety Code.

For now, Coimisiún na Meán has raised concerns and begun a formal examination. Whether X breached the rules, and whether penalties or other enforcement measures will follow, remains to be determined.

Reporting Credit: Coimisiún na Meán — Sept. 8, 2026 announcement of the formal investigation, the specific concerns over X’s age-assurance and parental-control systems, and the enforcement powers available under Ireland’s Online Safety Code; Ireland’s Data Protection Commission — February 2026 inquiry into X Internet Unlimited Company concerning data processing associated with X’s Grok service.

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Elon Musk has made another bold move in the tech industry, selling his social media platform, X, to his artificial intelligence company, xAI, in an all-stock deal valued at $33 billion. The billionaire entrepreneur announced the transaction on Friday, describing it as a strategic step to integrate AI-driven advancements with X’s extensive user base.

Both X and xAI are privately held companies, meaning they are not obligated to disclose their financial details publicly. However, Musk emphasized the potential benefits of the deal, stating that it will “unlock immense potential by blending xAI’s advanced AI capability and expertise with X’s massive reach.”

The deal values xAI at $80 billion and X at $33 billion. Musk originally acquired the platform—then known as Twitter—for $44 billion in 2022. Since then, he has significantly reshaped the company, cutting staff, altering content moderation policies, and rebranding it as X.

Musk launched xAI in 2023, focusing on artificial intelligence development. With this latest merger, he aims to integrate AI more deeply into X, leveraging the platform’s vast data and user interactions to enhance AI capabilities.

“xAI and X’s futures are intertwined. Today, we officially take the step to combine the data, models, compute, distribution, and talent,” Musk posted on X. “This combination will unlock immense potential by blending xAI’s advanced AI capability and expertise with X’s massive reach. The combined company will deliver smarter, more meaningful experiences to billions of people while staying true to our core mission of seeking truth and advancing knowledge.”

It remains unclear how this deal will impact everyday X users. xAI already utilizes data from X posts to train its AI models, and premium X subscribers have access to its AI chatbot, Grok. Whether this merger will introduce new AI-driven features or alter user experiences significantly is yet to be seen.

Musk’s latest move reinforces his long-term vision of integrating artificial intelligence into digital communication platforms, potentially reshaping the future of online interactions.

Source: AP News – Elon Musk sells X to his own xAI for $33 billion in all-stock deal

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