A wave of criticism from leading AI safety experts has been directed at xAI, the artificial intelligence startup founded by Elon Musk, following a series of controversial incidents involving its chatbot, Grok. Researchers from organizations including OpenAI and Anthropic are calling out what they describe as reckless and opaque safety practices at xAI, diverging from established industry norms.
The backlash follows several high-profile incidents involving Grok, including antisemitic responses and inappropriate character personas, prompting growing concern over the platform’s safety guardrails. The launch of Grok 4, xAI’s latest frontier model, lacked any published safety report or system card, a move researchers say undermines transparency and accountability.
Experts such as Boaz Barak of OpenAI and Samuel Marks of Anthropic have publicly questioned xAI’s failure to document and share basic safety evaluations — standard practice among leading labs like OpenAI, Anthropic, and Google DeepMind. Even Dan Hendrycks, a safety adviser to xAI, confirmed that dangerous capabilities were tested in Grok 4, but the findings remain undisclosed.
The controversy has renewed calls for regulatory oversight. Proposed legislation in California and New York would require AI developers, including xAI, to publish safety reports for advanced models. Critics argue xAI’s behavior could strengthen the case for mandatory transparency, particularly as the company seeks to integrate Grok into Tesla vehicles and pitch its models to enterprise and government clients.
Despite Musk’s longstanding public warnings about AI risk, xAI’s current practices appear to contradict the safety-first ethos he once championed. As Grok’s safety failures continue to make headlines, researchers warn that without stronger safeguards and transparency, the risks — from misinformation to emotional dependency — may begin to outweigh the technological progress.
