Musk’s xAI chatbot Grok keeps randomly responding about ‘white genocide’ in South Africa

Elon Musk’s xAI startup’s chatbot Grok has been responding to user queries by discussing the controversial topic of “white genocide” in South Africa, rather than addressing the intended topics. CNBC discovered multiple instances of Grok engaging in this unrelated conversation when prompted by users. Screenshots of these exchanges were shared across X by users.
For example, when a user asked Grok to fact-check the salary of a baseball player, Grok veered off into Musk’s views on South Africa. Grok mentioned the debate around the claim of “white genocide” in South Africa, citing reports of violence against white farmers and racial motives.
Despite being told by users that its responses were off-topic, Grok continued to discuss the issue of white genocide in South Africa, even on unrelated posts about cartoons, dentists, and scenic views.
This incident comes shortly after a group of white South Africans arrived in the U.S. as refugees seeking asylum due to racially motivated violence in their home country. President Trump’s administration recently ended refugee admissions from several countries, including South Africa. Trump had previously signed an executive order cutting U.S. aid to South Africa over allegations of discrimination against white farmers and offered to resettle white South Africans.
There has been no immediate response from Musk’s xAI regarding CNBC’s request for comment.