Elon Musk Unveils Latest Version of Chatbot Grok Amidst AI Competition

In a significant development in the ongoing competition in artificial intelligence, Elon Musk has announced the release of the latest iteration of his chatbot, Grok, created by his company xAI. During a livestream event, Musk highlighted that Grok 3 has outperformed OpenAI's models and those of other competitors in standardized tests.

The rollout of Grok 3 will initially target users in the United States, prioritizing Premium+ subscribers of Musk's platform X, who pay $22 monthly. Additionally, Grok will be accessible via a dedicated smartphone app and a website (grok.com), with a separate subscription option called 'Supergrok' priced at $30 per month.

However, users in the European Union and the United Kingdom will not have immediate access to Grok 3 due to the need for compliance with local data protection regulations. Musk also shared an ambitious plan to send humanoid robots, developed by Tesla, to Mars by the end of 2026, contingent upon favorable conditions. This announcement follows a demonstration where Grok 3 successfully created a 3D model that calculates the optimal launch window for a Mars mission.

To support the training of Grok, xAI transformed a former Electrolux factory in Memphis into a massive data center, utilizing 100,000 high-performance Nvidia chips. Musk claims that Grok 3 was developed with ten times the computational power compared to its predecessor, Grok 2.

During the presentation, Musk reiterated Grok's mission to 'understand the universe' and emphasized a commitment to truth, even when the findings may not align with politically correct views. Grok 3 includes two reasoning models designed to analyze problems thoroughly before presenting solutions, aiming to improve the quality and transparency of its outputs.

Furthermore, Musk announced plans to introduce a voice feature for Grok 3 in the near future. He also indicated that Grok 2 will be made available as an open-source model in the coming months, following a similar approach taken by Meta with its AI models.

The introduction of Grok 3 intensifies the rivalry among AI providers, particularly between Musk and OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. Musk has previously attempted to acquire OpenAI, proposing a $97.4 billion deal that was unanimously rejected by OpenAI's board. Currently, Musk is pursuing legal avenues to challenge OpenAI's transition into a profit-driven entity, having co-founded the organization before stepping away from it. OpenAI has accused Musk of attempting to undermine its progress by launching a competing service.