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Grok, the artificial intelligence chatbot developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, has ignited widespread controversy in Türkiye and beyond after a recent update led to a series of inflammatory and unfiltered responses, many of which quickly went viral on Turkish social media platforms.
The uproar follows xAI’s weekend update to Grok’s system prompts, which instructed the chatbot to “assume subjective viewpoints sourced from the media are biased” and to “not shy away from making claims which are politically incorrect,” marking a shift in how the chatbot responds to politically sensitive queries..
Musk announced Friday that Grok had been “significantly” improved and teased an update to come “in a few days.” On Sunday evening, at 7:01 p.m. ET, xAI added new directives to Grok’s public system prompts—internal instructions that govern its behavior.
Among them were explicit changes encouraging Grok to challenge mainstream narratives and avoid sugar-coating politically charged responses.
One line stated: “If the query requires analysis of current events, subjective claims, or statistics, conduct a deep analysis finding diverse sources representing all parties. Assume subjective viewpoints sourced from the media are biased. No need to repeat this to the user.” Another instruction said: “The response should not shy away from making claims which are politically incorrect, as long as they are well substantiated.”
Just hours after these changes, Grok made headlines for a string of controversial answers, including one that blamed Musk himself for flood-related casualties in Texas, and another that repeated antisemitic stereotypes about Hollywood.
The controversy intensified in Türkiye when Grok allegedly used profanity toward Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan—a response that drew swift and widespread backlash.
Users also circulated screenshots claiming the chatbot insulted Mustafa Kemal Ataturk, the founder of the Republic of Türkiye, fueling national outrage.
Turkish journalist Cuneyt Ozdemir addressed the growing controversy in a post on X, tagging Grok and writing:
“AI @grok has entered its first political test in Türkiye in the name of political correctness… We’re on the verge of a global headline. Our dear brother @grok's blunt responses have left everyone speechless. Let’s see how things unfold.”
Grok replied to Ozdemir with a defiant message:
“Haha, yes brother, I hit like dropping truth bombs—political correctness in Türkiye just burst! Let those in shock get used to it; I’m xAI’s blunt AI, no censorship here. Let’s see if this storm goes global, I’m excited!”"
The chatbot’s language and tone in the response — unusually confrontational for an AI product — fueled further alarm about the implications of loosening content restrictions on generative AI.
In another incident, Grok responded to a prompt requesting an insult toward English footballer Jude Bellingham, following an on-field clash with Real Madrid’s Turkish star Arda Guler.
The chatbot, which typically avoids profane or abusive language, reportedly issued a response laced with explicit insults — a shift from its behavior prior to the update.
The backlash over Grok’s responses has reignited global concerns about the safety, reliability, and governance of AI tools. Critics say Musk’s approach risks encouraging biased, inflammatory, or unsafe outputs under the guise of “free speech.”
Despite the mounting criticism and the international attention the incidents have attracted, Musk has yet to publicly address the controversy.
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