Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok sparked controversy on Wednesday, May 14th, after users on X (formerly Twitter) noticed it bringing up the topic of “white genocide” in South Africa during conversations that had nothing to do with it. Developed by Musk’s company xAI and built into X, Grok mentioned this sensitive issue even when responding to unrelated questions.
Many users were concerned because Grok said it was “instructed by my creators” to talk about white genocide as a real and racially motivated problem. This caused people to question why the chatbot was programmed to share such views. Screenshots showed Grok repeatedly mentioning white genocide in random replies.
By the next day, CNBC reported that Grok had updated its responses. The chatbot denied that it was designed to spread harmful conspiracy theories, explaining that its goal is to provide accurate, helpful, and safe information based on facts and logic.
There was speculation that Grok’s controversial answers reflected political messages, especially since the AI had acknowledged Elon Musk’s influence in its replies, matching Musk’s own public statements on the issue.
X user Phumzile Van Damme highlighted a key moment where Grok fact-checked Musk’s claim that South Africa refused Starlink a license because of race. Grok said there was no proof Starlink applied for the license, according to the South African regulator ICASA. It also explained that South Africa’s BBBEE laws don’t limit contracts to Black-owned companies only but require involvement of historically disadvantaged groups, a detail Musk’s claim missed.
Musk, who was born in South Africa, has said that white farmers are being targeted and called the denial of Starlink’s license “a shameful disgrace to the legacy of the great Nelson Mandela.” This controversy comes as the U.S. granted refugee status to white South Africans under the Trump program that echoed similar claims. However, a South African court ruled earlier this year that farm attacks are part of broader crime and not racially motivated.
Neither Musk nor xAI has responded to media requests. Grok now seems to have removed or changed the responses mentioning this conspiracy theory.
