6 shocking facts about Grok AI that will blow your mind

When Elon Musk announced Grok AI in November 2023, many thought it was just another chatbot trying to compete with ChatGPT and Google’s Gemini.

But Grok quickly set itself apart by combining Musk’s signature flair for disruption with bold promises about truth-seeking AI, cutting-edge reasoning, and integrations across Tesla and X (formerly Twitter).

Built by Musk’s AI startup xAI, Grok was designed not only to rival OpenAI but also to reflect Musk’s vision of an AI that isn’t “politically correct.”

While most people know Grok as Musk’s answer to ChatGPT, there are several fascinating as well as controversial details that many overlook.

1. A name born from science fiction

The word “Grok” isn’t random; it’s a nod to the 1961 sci-fi classic “Stranger in a Strange Land” by Robert A. Heinlein.

In the novel, “to grok” means to deeply and intuitively understand something at its core.

Musk chose the name because he envisions Grok as more than just a chatbot; he wants it to be an AI that “truly understands” the world and its users, not just predicts text.

This literary connection gives Grok an identity rooted in the culture of curiosity, exploration, and deep comprehension.

2. It was almost called “TruthGPT”

Before “Grok,” Musk publicly floated the name TruthGPT in April 2023 during an interview with Tucker Carlson.

At the time, he described it as “a maximum truth-seeking AI that tries to understand the nature of the universe.”

While the branding eventually shifted to Grok, the idea of building an AI committed to truth remains central to the project.

3. Grok 3: Musk’s most powerful AI chatbot yet

By February 2025, Grok had already evolved into its third generation, Grok 3, which Musk proudly announced as xAI’s flagship model.

According to Musk, it was trained with 10 times more computing power than Grok 2, running on a massive data center known as Colossus, powered by nearly 200,000 GPUs.

Benchmark results suggested Grok 3 even surpassed OpenAI’s leading o3-mini-high in areas like mathematical reasoning.

4. Grok can help you build your own games

Unlike many chatbots that focus purely on productivity, Grok has a playful and creative side. 

Apart from answering questions, it can actually help users design their own games.

From creating storylines and writing rules to generating code snippets, Grok offers everything needed to kickstart a personal project.

5. Grok Imagine: Musk’s “AI Vine”

In July 2025, Musk unveiled Grok Imagine, a text-to-video generator capable of producing six-second animated clips.

Musk dubbed it an “AI Vine,” evoking nostalgia for the short-video platform.

The tool includes a “Spicy Mode,” which controversially allows the generation of explicit images and videos.

Reports even surfaced of Grok Imagine generating inappropriate content of celebrities such as Taylor Swift without being prompted, fueling debates about AI ethics and responsibility.

6. A history of controversies

Like many Musk ventures, Grok hasn’t avoided controversy. In 2024, it had to be altered after spreading misinformation about the US presidential election, wrongly claiming that Democrats couldn’t change their candidate after Biden’s withdrawal.

Later, Grok was caught referencing a false “white genocide” narrative in South Africa, even inserting it into unrelated topics like baseball or enterprise software.

Critics argued this showed the danger of bias and inadequate safeguards in AI systems.