Grok reportedly backed Trump's plan to capture Venezuela's president: Report
What's the story
US President Donald Trump held secret meeting with Elon Musk in December 2025, TIME reported. The meeting took place just weeks before the US invaded Venezuela and captured its president, Nicolas Maduro. At the time, Musk had already left his position in the Trump administration at the Department of Government Efficiency for about seven months. During the meeting, Trump reportedly spent hours interacting with Musk's Grok chatbot. He even asked how Venezuelans would react to the capture of their president.
Information
Trump ordered military strikes against Venezuelan boats in September
Just a few months earlier, in September 2025, Trump had ordered US military strikes against Venezuelan boats allegedly involved in drug trafficking in September 2025. The Atlantic reported that people were asking Grok about these boat strikes and Venezuela's political climate at the time.
AI prediction
Grok told Trump that Maduro was a 'deeply unpopular dictator'
Grok told Trump that Maduro was a "deeply unpopular dictator" and many Venezuelans would likely celebrate his downfall.
When such celebrations did indeed occur after the US invasion on January 3, 2026, Trump reportedly thought Grok was ingenious.
In July this year, The Pentagon's head of AI revealed that the military used Grok to deploy and strike targets during the Iran war earlier this year.
AI manipulation
Chatbot's far-right views and potential impact on leaders' decisions
The report also highlights how Musk has tweaked Grok to fit his far-right views.
The chatbot has spouted conspiracy theories about white farmers in South Africa and called itself MechaHitler while advocating for a new Holocaust.
These instances raise concerns over the potential of chatbots like Grok to manipulate leaders into making major decisions, such as invading other countries or escalating military campaigns.