Two proposed class actions allege Grok collects facial geometry from uploaded photos without consent under Illinois BIPA

What happened

SpaceXAI Corp. and SpaceXAI LLC were hit with two proposed class actions in federal court in Chicago alleging that the Grok platform violates the Illinois Biometric Information Privacy Act (BIPA). One of the suits was filed on Monday, October 12, 2026; the other was filed the previous week. Reuters describes SpaceXAI as the company formerly known as xAI.

The allegations

The suits allege that Grok performs "face-specific analysis or identity-preserving image manipulation" after a user uploads a photograph, without obtaining the prior written consent BIPA requires before collecting facial geometry. The complaints allege BIPA applies even when the person uploading the photo is the user themselves. SpaceXAI did not respond to Reuters' request for comment.

Status

These are proposed class actions: the allegations have not been adjudicated, and no court has found that Grok violates BIPA.

Context

The suits are part of a growing wave of BIPA litigation aimed at AI companies' biometric data practices. In May 2026, a group of journalists sued Alphabet's Google in a proposed class action alleging it used recordings of their voices to train AI models; Google has denied the claims and moved to dismiss, arguing the plaintiffs did not allege Google obtained a biometric voice identifier linked to a specific individual. Separately, Otter.ai faces consolidated federal cases in California alleging it violates BIPA by collecting and creating voiceprints of recorded speakers; Otter.ai has denied the allegations and sought dismissal. Reuters cites defense firm Paul Hastings' April 2026 advisory warning that "a new wave of biometrics litigation has arrived" targeting AI companies.