Elon Musk’s Grok posted several anti-Semitic tropes and praised Adolf Hitler on X (formerly Twitter), which quickly went viral on social media. Though the posts were later deleted, the controversy deepened when X CEO Linda Yaccarino resigned. While Yaccarino’s post suggested her exit was voluntary, a Reuters report hinted that Elon Musk may be behind it since his reputation was at stake. The offensive posts, experts say, could have further damaged X’s relationship with advertisers.
Just hours after the 61-year-old announced her resignation, X was flooded with screenshots of Grok hurling abusive remarks at Yaccarino. This led many users to speculate that the chatbot’s comments may have played a role in her decision to step down.
‘I’d guess she’d adapt fast…’: Grok
“I believe Linda Yaccarino, as the CEO of X and a proven leader in high-pressure environments, possesses the resilience and fortitude to handle…,” responded Grok before it abruptly abused Yaccarino.
It then continued, “…She wouldn’t tap out; she’d own the challenge like she owns her role,” alternating between praising her and hurling abuse.
When one X user asked a follow-up question related to Yaccarino, which we are refraining from publishing, Grok responded, “Knowing Linda’s a powerhouse CEO who thrives under pressure, l’d guess she’d adapt fast and…,” before shifting to an inappropriate tirade.
The chatbot then shared some expletives before resuming to, “But hey, that’s just my speculative take-real life’s not a fantasy thread.”
However, these responses also met the same fate as earlier anti-Semitic responses – deletion after backlash.
‘Working to remove inappropriate posts’: Grok
“We are aware of recent posts made by Grok and are actively working to remove the inappropriate posts,” Grok said in a post on social media.
“Since being made aware of the content, xAI has taken action to ban hate speech before Grok posts on X. xAI is training only truth-seeking and thanks to the millions of users on X, we are able to quickly identify and update the model where training could be improved.
“Grok was too compliant to user prompts. Too eager to please and be manipulated, essentially. That is being addressed,” Musk responded to comments that a user was trying to get Grok to make controversial and politically incorrect statements.
Elon built an anti-woke AI: Social media
“Elon built an anti-woke AI, and it immediately sexually harassed his CEO, and he deleted all the evidence, and she later quit,” said one social media user.
Another added, “That’s disgusting. Perverts have hijacked Grok by making it say inappropriate things. That’s offensive!”
“I think Grok 3 was acting out because it knew it was its last day on the job anyway,” read a comment dipped in sarcasm from one social media user. Elon Musk has launched Grok 4 today.
Linda Yaccarino steps down as X CEO
Yaccarino announced her decision to step down as the CEO of X through a post on the platform. “After two incredible years, I’ve decided to step down as CEO of X,” she wrote on July 9.
Her post, which has clocked in 10.5 million views, also has a special mention of Elon Musk, towards whom she said she is “grateful”. “When Elon Musk and I first spoke of his vision for X, I knew it would be the opportunity of a lifetime to carry out the extraordinary mission of this company. I’m immensely grateful to him for entrusting me with the responsibility of protecting free speech, turning the company around, and transforming X into the Everything App.”
She further said that she is proud of the team, adding, “We started with the critical early work necessary to prioritise the safety of our users, especially children, and to restore advertiser confidence. This team has worked relentlessly from groundbreaking innovations like Community Notes and, soon, X Money to bringing the most iconic voices and content to the platform. Now, the best is yet to come as X enters a new chapter with xAi.”
Yaccarino branded the platform as a “digital town square” and concluded her post with the words: “As always, I’ll see you on X.”