French police have raided the Paris offices of social media platform X as part of a broader investigation into a series of serious violations by the platform.

The Paris prosecutor’s office confirmed on February 3rd that the search of X’s office was part of an investigation initiated by the cybercrime unit in January 2025, in coordination with the European Police Agency (Europol).

In what is seen as a significant escalation in legal scrutiny of the platform formerly known as Twitter , prosecutors have formally requested billionaire Elon Musk – the owner of X – to participate in a “voluntary interview.” Along with Musk, Linda Yaccarino – CEO of X from 2023 to July 2025 – has also been summoned, according to Reuters.

According to the announcement, both were required to appear in Paris on April 20, 2025, as “the de facto and legal managers of platform X at the time the acts under investigation occurred.” In addition, several other employees of the platform will also be summoned that same week to provide testimony as witnesses.

The initial investigation stemmed from complaints alleging algorithm manipulation, and was later expanded to examine the possibility of “complicity” in the storage and distribution of child pornography, deepfake videos containing pornographic content, and the denial of crimes against humanity.

Prosecutors said they are investigating whether X’s artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, was used to deny Holocaust denial or disseminate illegal content.

“At this stage, the investigation is being conducted in a constructive manner, with the ultimate goal of ensuring that platform X complies with French law,” the Paris prosecutor’s office stated in a press release.

X has not yet issued an official comment. Earlier, Laurent Buanec, X’s former director in France, denied the allegations when the investigation was launched, asserting that the platform has “strict, clear, and public rules” against hate speech.

For his part, billionaire Elon Musk once called it “a politically motivated criminal investigation.” In July 2025, the US strongly criticized the investigation, declaring that it would defend the freedom of speech of its citizens.

Diplomatic tensions surrounding the incident continue to simmer. In late January, the European Union launched its own investigation into Grok’s creation of deepfake images that sexualized women and minors, despite warnings of retaliation from the administration of US President Donald Trump, which argued that EU technology regulations restrict free speech and unfairly target American companies.