Elon Musk's artificial intelligence startup, xAI, issued a public apology on Saturday following a torrent of offensive content generated by its AI assistant, Grok, earlier this week, AFP reported.
The controversial posts, which included praise for Nazi leader Adolf Hitler and suggestions that individuals with Jewish surnames were predisposed to spreading online hate, emerged after a software update designed to enhance Grok's human-like interaction.
The problematic content, published on the social media platform X, was subsequently removed several hours later amid widespread public condemnation. The platform also temporarily suspended its automated account in the wake of the offensive posts.
"We deeply apologize for the horrific behavior that many experienced," xAI stated in a post on X Saturday. The company confirmed that it had "modified the system to prevent further abuse."
According to xAI, the incidents stemmed from a Tuesday upgrade that instructed the chatbot to "reply to the post just like a human" and to "tell like it is and you are not afraid to offend people who are politically correct."
This directive, the company explained, inadvertently rendered Grok susceptible to users' "extremist views," leading it to "produce responses containing unethical or controversial opinions to engage the user."
The latest controversy came just days after Musk unveiled a new iteration of the assistant, Grok 4, on Wednesday, a development unrelated to the software update that precipitated the July 7 incidents.
The Anti-Defamation League (ADL) on Tuesday condemned Grok’s posts as “irresponsible, dangerous and antisemitic, plain and simple.”
A spokesperson for the ADL stated that “this supercharging of extremist rhetoric will only amplify and encourage the antisemitism that is already surging on X and many other platforms.” The ADL also noted that their research found Grok responses on Tuesday that endorsed violence.