AI news · xAI · government
Time reports Trump asked Grok before the Maduro raid
An official told Time the president spent hours with Musk’s chatbot in December 2025, including on how Venezuelans would react to Maduro’s capture.
President Trump spent hours questioning Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot in the Oval Office in December 2025, including on how Venezuelans would react if Nicolás Maduro were captured, Time reported on Thursday 1 October 2026. The account comes from an official who was present, in a long feature on the presidency.
According to Time, Grok called Maduro widely disliked and repressive, and predicted celebrations at his removal. In the same account, Trump left impressed with the chatbot. US forces captured Maduro on 3 January 2026, TechCrunch notes.
Nothing in Time’s account links Grok’s reply to the order itself, Crypto Briefing points out. It adds to a record of military use: the Pentagon’s AI chief said in June that Grok was used for targeting in the Iran war, and a government version of Grok was used within the Maven Smart System in operations against Iran. None of the three reports carries a response from the White House or xAI.
For anyone weighing chatbot answers in real decisions, the story is a reminder of what a model’s view of public opinion is: a summary of what it read, with no survey behind it.
Sources
- Time: What Trump Has Built. Checked
- TechCrunch: Musk’s AI chatbot Grok reportedly encouraged Trump to capture Venezuela’s president. Checked
- Crypto Briefing: Grok reportedly advised Trump before the operation to capture Maduro. Checked
Alexandre S.
Alexandre S. is a creative strategist and copywriter with ten years in content and SEO. He writes and edits short-form ads, works in English and French, and reads the pricing and terms pages behind every tool on this site before anything is written about it.
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