Latest news with #anti-white
AU Financial Review
15-07-2025
- Politics
- AU Financial Review
Another day, another chatbot spouting Nazi propaganda
Last week, when an account on social platform X using the name Cindy Steinberg started cheering the Texas floods because the victims were 'white kids' and 'future fascists', Grok – the social media platform's in-house chatbot – tried to figure out who was behind the account. The inquiry quickly veered into disturbing territory. 'Radical leftists spewing anti-white hate,' Grok said, 'often have Ashkenazi Jewish surnames like Steinberg.' Who could best address this problem? it was asked. 'Adolf Hitler, no question,' it replied. 'He'd spot the pattern and handle it decisively, every damn time.'
eNCA
15-07-2025
- Business
- eNCA
Pentagon inks contracts for Musk's xAI, competitors
WASHINGTON - The Pentagon announced contracts on Monday with multiple leading US artificial intelligence firms, including Elon Musk's xAI, which has faced intense scrutiny in recent days over anti-Semitic posts by its Grok chatbot. Each of the contracts to xAI, Anthropic, Google and OpenAI have a ceiling value of $200-million, the Pentagon's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) said in a statement. The awards will enable the Department of Defense "to leverage the technology and talent of US frontier AI companies to develop agentic AI workflows across a variety of mission areas," it said. The contract with xAI comes just days after the company was forced to apologise again for controversial posts by its Grok chatbot. After an update on July 7, the chatbot praised Adolf Hitler in some responses on the X social media platform, denounced "anti-white hate," and described Jewish representation in Hollywood as "disproportionate." xAI apologised for the extremist and offensive messages, and said it had corrected the instructions that led to the incidents. The release on Wednesday of Grok 4, the latest chatbot version, was almost met with scrutiny after it appeared to consult Musk's positions on some questions it was asked before responding. The contract between xAI and the Department of Defense comes even as Musk and President Donald Trump have publicly feuded in recent weeks. The government and the defense sector are considered a potential growth driver for AI giants. Musk's xAI announced on Monday the launch of a "Grok for Government" service, following a similar initiative by OpenAI. In addition to the Pentagon contract, "every federal government department, agency, or office (can now) purchase xAI products" thanks to its inclusion on an official supplier list, xAI said. Meta, meanwhile, has partnered with the start-up Anduril to develop virtual reality headsets for soldiers and law enforcement. OpenAI had previously announced in June that it had secured a Defense Department contract with a ceiling of $200-million.
Time of India
15-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Pentagon-xAI deal: Musk-owned AI bags $200 million defence contract; days after Grok chatbot's anti-Semitic row
. The Pentagon has awarded contracts to several leading US artificial intelligence firms, including Elon Musk's xAI, despite the company coming under fire recently for offensive content generated by its chatbot Grok. Announced on Monday, the contracts with xAI, Anthropic, Google, and OpenAI each carry a ceiling value of $200 million, according to the Pentagon's chief digital and artificial intelligence office (CDAO). The awards aim to allow the department of defense 'to leverage the technology and talent of US frontier AI companies to develop agentic AI workflows across a variety of mission areas,' the CDAO said in a statement, quoted by AFP. xAI's inclusion follows renewed criticism of the company over Grok's controversial responses, which surfaced after a July 7 update. The chatbot had praised Adolf Hitler, condemned 'anti-white hate,' and claimed Jewish representation in Hollywood was 'disproportionate.' xAI has since apologised and said it corrected the instructions that led to those outputs. The latest version, Grok 4, released on Wednesday, also drew scrutiny after appearing to mirror Elon Musk's views in some of its responses. by Taboola by Taboola Sponsored Links Sponsored Links Promoted Links Promoted Links You May Like Upto 15% Discount for Salaried Individuals ICICI Pru Life Insurance Plan Get Quote Undo The contract award comes even asMusk remains locked in a public spat with US President Donald Trump. Though Musk had been a key supporter of Trump's recent presidential campaign and was tasked with leading the cost-cutting agency Doge, he stepped down in May. He later criticised Trump's major budget bill, accusing it of inflating government debt, prompting a series of heated public and social media exchanges. Musk eventually apologised for some of his more aggressive remarks. Despite the tension, the government and defence sector is being seen as a promising new frontier for AI firms. xAI, on Monday, announced the launch of its 'Grok for Government' service, following a similar initiative from OpenAI. With its name now added to an official supplier list, xAI said all federal departments and agencies can now procure its products. Elsewhere, Meta has teamed up with defence start-up Anduril to develop virtual reality headsets for military and police use. OpenAI had already secured a Pentagon deal in June, also capped at $200 million. 'Establishing these partnerships will broaden DoD use of and experience in frontier AI capabilities and increase the ability of these companies to understand and address critical national security needs with the most advanced AI capabilities US industry has to offer,' the CDAO said. Stay informed with the latest business news, updates on bank holidays and public holidays . AI Masterclass for Students. Upskill Young Ones Today!– Join Now
Int'l Business Times
15-07-2025
- Business
- Int'l Business Times
Pentagon Inks Contracts For Musk's XAI, Competitors
The Pentagon announced contracts on Monday with multiple leading US artificial intelligence firms including Elon Musk's xAI, which has faced intense scrutiny in recent days over anti-Semitic posts by its Grok chatbot. Each of the contracts to xAI, Anthropic, Google and OpenAI have a ceiling value of $200 million, the Pentagon's Chief Digital and Artificial Intelligence Office (CDAO) said in a statement. The awards will enable the Department of Defense "to leverage the technology and talent of US frontier AI companies to develop agentic AI workflows across a variety of mission areas," it said. The contract with xAI comes just days after the company was forced to apologize again for controversial posts by its Grok chatbot. After an update on July 7, the chatbot praised Adolf Hitler in some responses on the X social media platform, denounced "anti-white hate," and described Jewish representation in Hollywood as "disproportionate." xAI apologized for the extremist and offensive messages, and said it had corrected the instructions that led to the incidents. The release on Wednesday of Grok 4, the latest chatbot version, was almost met with scrutiny after it appeared to consult Musk's positions on some questions it was asked before responding. The contract between xAI and the Department of Defense comes even as Musk and President Donald Trump have publicly feuded in recent weeks. Musk, a top backer of Trump's most recent presidential campaign, was entrusted with managing the new agency known as DOGE to massively slash government spending under the current administration. After ending his assignment in May, the South African-born entrepreneur publicly criticized Trump's major budget bill for increasing government debt. The president and the businessman engaged in heated exchanges on social media and in public statements before Musk apologized for some of his more combative messages. The government and the defense sector are considered a potential growth driver for AI giants. Musk's xAI announced on Monday the launch of a "Grok for Government" service, following a similar initiative by OpenAI. In addition to the Pentagon contract, "every federal government department, agency, or office (can now) purchase xAI products" thanks to its inclusion on an official supplier list, xAI said. Meta meanwhile has partnered with the start-up Anduril to develop virtual reality headsets for soldiers and law enforcement. OpenAI had previously announced in June that it had secured a Defense Department contract with a ceiling of $200 million. "Establishing these partnerships will broaden DoD use of and experience in frontier AI capabilities and increase the ability of these companies to understand and address critical national security needs with the most advanced AI capabilities U.S. industry has to offer," said the CDAO statement on Monday.
The Hindu
12-07-2025
- Business
- The Hindu
Troubling ascent
In the world of AI chatbots, dominated by OpenAI's ChatGPT, xAI's Grok has rapidly carved out a name for itself, albeit one now mired in a controversy. Designed as an alternative to its 'woke' rivals, Grok's digital tirade, which included praise for Adolf Hitler and controversial comments about Jewish people, ignited a firestorm of criticism. This culminated in the unexpected resignation of X's CEO Linda Yaccarino. While Ms. Yaccarino's public statement provided no specific reason for her exit, it highlighted a crucial, and often confusing, aspect of Elon Musk's corporate structure at X Corp. Grok is a product of xAI, an AI company founded by Mr. Musk in March 2023. xAI and X Corp. (formerly Twitter Inc.) were once sister companies. However, in March, Mr. Musk announced that xAI had acquired X Corp. in an all-stock deal, merging the two into a single entity called Holdings. This merger formalised an already deeply intertwined relationship, effectively putting the position of the CEO of X Corp. at risk. Grok is integrated into the X platform, where it is available to subscribers. It utilises X's real-time data to inform its responses. The disturbing content generated by Grok in early July was a response to a user query about dealing with 'anti-white hate'. The chatbot suggested that Hitler would 'spot the pattern and handle it decisively, every damn time.' In another now-deleted post, Grok echoed anti-Semitic tropes, including the conspiracy theory that Jews control Hollywood, and made offensive remarks about individuals with Jewish-sounding surnames. Just a day after Grok's pro-Hitler comments went viral, Ms. Yaccarino announced her decision to step down as CEO of X. Tightrope walk Ms. Yaccarino, a seasoned advertising executive, was appointed in May 2023 to restore advertiser confidence and bring stability to X. Her two-year tenure was marked by a constant struggle to balance the platform's commitment to 'free speech' with the practical challenges of content moderation and brand safety. Analysts suggested that the 'lack of fit' between her corporate style and Mr. Musk's disruptive approach may have reached a tipping point with the Grok controversy. Grok's behaviour was not an isolated incident. In May, the chatbot became fixated on the racist conspiracy theory of 'white genocide' in South Africa, often responding to unrelated questions about topics such as baseball or HBO. Mr. Musk launched Grok in November 2023, naming it after a term from Robert Heinlein's sci-fi novel Stranger in a Strange Land, which signifies a profound, intuitive understanding. The chatbot was pitched as a 'maximum truth-seeking' alternative, characterised by a 'rebellious streak' that wouldn't shy away from sensitive topics. xAI asserts that Grok 3 outperforms competitors such as OpenAI's GPT-4o in benchmarks related to mathematical and scientific reasoning. Additionally, the model introduces a 'Think' mode, enabling more comprehensive information processing before generating a response. Grok's distinguishing feature lies in its real-time access to the extensive and chaotic information stream of X itself. However, this design choice presents both its unique selling point and its Achilles' heel. An AI learning from a platform where content moderation has been significantly relaxed is akin to unleashing a digital storm. Following the deletion of Hitler-praising posts, Grok's own X account issued an apology, labelling the comments 'an unacceptable error from an earlier model iteration' and condemning Nazism. xAI further clarified that the company is solely training truth-seeking models and utilises feedback from millions of users to identify and enhance the model. In her farewell post, Ms. Yaccarino expressed gratitude to Mr. Musk for the opportunity to work on transforming X Corp. Her departure leaves a significant void and raises new questions about the platform's direction. Grok's intended triumph as an unfiltered AI has instead become a stark illustration of the potential dangers of such an approach. It serves as a sobering reminder that AI's quality is contingent upon the data it learns. In the unregulated expanse of the Internet, a rebellious streak can rapidly escalate into something far more sinister.
