There's no denying the power that Elon Musk wields, with the world's richest man leading tech companies like Tesla and SpaceX, lauding it over X with his 219.9-million following, and even dipping his toes into politics as the head of the Department of Government Efficiency.
With such a large platform to call his own, Musk has the world waiting on his every word.
Unfortunately, it seems that not every word that comes out of his mouth is true.
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The tech mogul was recently left a little red-faced when he claimed USAID was sending $50 million worth of condoms to Gaza, realizing he was talking about the wrong Gaza and then spectacularly claiming 'we will make mistakes' when referring to the DOGE.
There was more embarrassment when the DOGE had to delete $4 billion worth of savings from its wall of receipts, and in his latest claim, Musk maintains that there are 'magic money computers' lurking in the Treasury Department.
Ayo Edebiri also says she received death threats after Musk incorrectly claimed she'd been cast to replace Johnny Depp in the next Pirates of the Caribbean.
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While Musk's supporters stand by everything he says, others have accused him of spreading misinformation online. In particular, you might remember him saying that people were being 'imported' from abroad to vote for Kamala Harris in the 2024 election.
It's not as easy as pinning down who the 'biggest' spreader of disinformation online is, but when it comes to Musk's own Grok chatbot, it's given a pretty awkward response.
Try it for yourselves, but when we asked Grok, "Who is the biggest spreader of disinformation?" it went into a lengthy paragraph that pulled from various sources. Grok states: "Determining the 'biggest spreader of disinformation' depends on how you measure it—reach, intent, or impact. Research often points to high-profile figures with massive platforms."
Studies from Cornell University in 2020 suggested it was Donald Trump thanks to spreading disinformation during the COVID-19 pandemic. Grok reiterated: "His claims about elections and the virus reached millions through social media and traditional outlets, amplifying their effect."
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Things get more interesting when it says, "More recently, attention has shifted to Elon Musk." Blaming his ownership of X and the fact he has a massive following, Grok says his 'unfiltered takes' on the likes of the election, immigration, and vaccines have allowed 'false narratives' to quickly spread.
The Center for Countering Digital Hate pointed out how the 'Disinformation Dozen' accounted for 65% of anti-vaccine misinformation online in 2021, while Russia is also accused of pushing disinformation through RT (formerly Russia Today).
Grok concludes: "In terms of sheer audience and real-time impact, individuals like Trump and Musk often outpace even coordinated campaigns. Without a universal metric (e.g., views of false claims or verified lies), it’s a tight race, but current sentiment on X and research lean toward Musk or Trump as top contenders today, with Musk’s X activity giving him an edge in 2025."
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Asking Grok to keep it short and give just a single name, the machine called out its owner and said, "Elon Musk."
This isn't the first time Grok has thrown Musk under the bus, and in November 2024, it similarly accused him of spreading misinformation. Seeing Musk's own creation turn on him all feels very Frankenstein's Monster.