Elon Musk has entered the online information space with Grokipedia, an encyclopedia that directly challenges the foundational principles of Wikipedia. The key difference lies in its authorship: Grokipedia relies entirely on AI, while Wikipedia is built by human volunteers.
Musk, who has been planning this rival project for at least a month, stated that an AI encyclopedia is “super important for civilization.” Grokipedia does not have human authors or editors; instead, it claims to be “fact-checked” by Grok, Musk’s own AI chatbot.
This AI-centric approach is already reflecting the biases of its creator. Musk has been a vocal critic of Wikipedia and “mainstream media,” programming his social media site X (Twitter) to amplify conservative viewpoints. Grokipedia appears to follow suit, with content aligning closely with right-wing talking points.
A prime example is the entry on the January 6 insurrection. It parrots the falsehood of “widespread claims of voting irregularities” and minimizes Donald Trump’s involvement in inciting the violence, framing the day’s events as a “dispute” between “legitimate grievances” and a “premeditated threat.”
This automated approach has led to immediate accusations of inaccuracy from journalists, citing entries that make false claims, such as linking pornography to the worsening of the Aids epidemic. The project was reportedly suggested by David Sacks, a former Trump administration official.