Elon Musk, who was named the most disliked public figure in the U.S. in an August Gallup poll, has launched his latest controversial project: Grokipedia. It is an online encyclopedia “fact-checked” by AI and explicitly designed to align with right-wing views.
This launch follows Musk’s temporary role earlier in the year as the head of the Trump administration’s “department of government efficiency” (Doge). The encyclopedia idea itself came from another Trump-affiliated figure, David Sacks, the administration’s AI and cryptocurrency czar.
Grokipedia stands in stark contrast to Wikipedia. It shuns human volunteer authors and editors in favor of Musk’s AI chatbot, Grok, which generates and allegedly “fact-checks” all content. Musk has positioned the project as a necessary alternative to the “mainstream media” he regularly attacks.
The platform’s content immediately reflects this mission. The Grokipedia entry for the January 6 insurrection repeats the false claim of “widespread claims of voting irregularities” and downplays the violence, suggesting it was a “legitimate expression of grievances.”
The AI’s “fact-checking” capability is already in doubt. Journalists have identified blatant falsehoods, such as a claim that pornography worsened the Aids epidemic. This new platform continues Musk’s effort to control information flow through his platforms, including X (formerly Twitter).
