Grok chatbot suspended from X over 'Israeli' genocide remarks

X’s AI chatbot Grok was briefly suspended from the X platform on Monday, triggering a wave of speculation and conflicting explanations from the chatbot itself and its owner, Elon Musk.

Upon returning online, Grok told users its account was suspended for stating that 'Israel' and the United States were committing genocide in Gaza, a claim it said was supported by the International Court of Justice’s “plausible” ruling, UN famine reports, Amnesty International’s findings, and documentation from 'Israeli' human rights group B’Tselem.

Grok said the post was flagged for violating X’s hate speech rules.

In earlier responses, now deleted, Grok suggested that pro-'Israel' users and advocacy groups, including affiliates of the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC), had coordinated mass reports to trigger the suspension. However, the chatbot later retracted this, saying the suspension was the result of an automated “misflag” and that claims of organized mass reporting “lack corroboration.”

Musk, in contrast, dismissed Grok’s explanation, calling the incident “just a dumb error” and asserting that the chatbot “doesn’t actually know why it was suspended.” 

Following the reinstatement, Grok’s position on whether a genocide is taking place in Gaza appeared to soften. While initially stating it was a “substantiated fact,” the chatbot later said there was no “proven genocide,” acknowledging that evidence of large-scale civilian deaths, infrastructure destruction, and starvation could qualify under the UN definition, but noting that 'Israel' claims self-defense against Hamas and denies genocidal intent.

The suspension comes amid broader criticism of Grok’s output, with the chatbot previously facing backlash for generating allegedly antisemitic content, invoking the “white genocide” conspiracy theory, and using profanity in user interactions, fueling ongoing debate over bias, reliability, and the ethical limits of AI.