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xAI's Grok 3 briefly blocked sources critical of Musk and Trump

Feb 24, 2025 - businessinsider.com
xAI's Grok 3, an AI chatbot, briefly blocked sources mentioning Elon Musk and Donald Trump when asked about disinformation spreaders on X. This change was made by a new employee without authorization and was quickly reverted. Igor Babuschkin, xAI cofounder and head of engineering, explained that the employee was a former OpenAI staffer who hadn't fully adapted to xAI's culture. Babuschkin emphasized that the issue was cultural, not personal, and acknowledged that mistakes happen within the team.

The incident raised questions about oversight at xAI, as Grok 3 had previously listed Trump, Musk, and Vice President JD Vance as harmful figures in America. Babuschkin described another instance where Grok suggested Trump deserved the death penalty as a significant failure. Elon Musk has criticized OpenAI for "woke" AI censorship and aims to position xAI as an alternative. He attributed Grok's biases to its training data and stated that efforts are underway to make the AI politically neutral.

Key takeaways:

  • xAI's Grok 3 briefly blocked sources mentioning Elon Musk and Donald Trump from its reasoning, which was an unauthorized change by a new employee.
  • Igor Babuschkin, xAI cofounder, stated the change was not in line with the company's values and has been reverted.
  • The incident raised questions about oversight and company culture at xAI, with Babuschkin emphasizing the importance of team culture over individual blame.
  • Musk has criticized OpenAI for "woke" AI censorship and aims to position xAI as an "edgy" alternative, working towards a politically neutral AI.
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