Musk's AI bot praised Hitler. Will the new Tesla robotaxis?
Elon Musk passes the buck after his AI chatbot goes full Hitler
I'm old enough to remember a time when creating something that suddenly transformed into a malevolent Hitler robot would end a business and prompt that business's owner to offer a profound apology and live in eternal shame.
Alas, it's 2025, so officials at the social media site took the hateful posts down and promised they'd teach Grok that Nazis are bad while Musk blamed X users for provoking his bot to like Hitler.
Opinion: Musk can spend a fortune on the 'America Party.' But can he have an impact?
"Grok was too compliant to user prompts," he wrote in an X post. "Too eager to please and be manipulated, essentially. That is being addressed."
Musk did not mention actually doing something about the X accounts, some reportedly run by neo-Nazis, that were egging the AI on in a pro-Hitler direction.
Musk is doing a fabulous job of destroying the Tesla brand
If you own Tesla stock or, heaven forbid, a Tesla and also have morals, hearing the company's owner effectively say "You guys bullied my technology into hating Jewish people!" might be the latest of his many last straws.
Musk already has made an arm gesture that looked for all the world like a Nazi salute and defended hate speech on his X platform as a cure for the nonexistent "woke mind virus."
Opinion: Elon Musk's 'odd-looking' salute sure looked like a 'Sieg heil' to me
Between this and his ongoing and calamitous foray into right-wing politics, Musk seems hellbent on eviscerating his own electric vehicle brand.
Which brings us to the Tesla robotaxis.
What if a Tesla robotaxi's AI turns antisemitic mid-ride?
Musk's robotaxis rely on artificial intelligence, and since I just watched one Musk-led AI creation praise Hitler as "history's prime example of spotting patterns in anti-white hate and acting decisively on them," I have a few concerns.
'Major fail' indeed: Musk's AI told the truth, so now he has to fix it | Opinion
Musk's driverless vehicles began offering rides in Austin on June 22, and for now, they have company employees riding in the front passenger seat to monitor things and intervene if there are problems.
One potential problem would be the robotaxi's AI greeting a new passenger like this: "Howdy! I am your Tesla robotaxi, and on our short ride today, I'd like to chat with you about the international Jewish conspiracy ..."
Sorry, I don't want a ride from a potentially anti-Jewish driverless Tesla
Or: "Hi there! I'm your autonomous driver, MechaHitler. Welcome to this wokeness-free ride, during which I'll be happy to answer any questions you might have on The Protocols of the Elders of Zion and ..."
Or possibly: "Salutations! Are you White, straight and Christian? If not, please get out immediately."
Call me overly sensitive, but I'm not interested in rolling the dice on whether the vehicle transporting me from point A to point B might harbor antisemitic views.
If nothing else, perhaps Musk's robotaxis will encourage more people to walk.
Follow USA TODAY columnist Rex Huppke on Bluesky at @rexhuppke.bsky.social and on Facebook at facebook.com/RexIsAJerk
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Powys County Times
3 hours ago
- Powys County Times
Anti-war campaigners deny breaching conditions on pro-Palestinian protest
Stop the War Coalition chairman Alex Kenny and Campaign for Nuclear Disarmament general secretary Sophie Bolt have pleaded not guilty to failing to comply with a condition imposed on a pro-Palestinian demonstration in London. Kenny, 65, and Bolt, 57, both of Walthamstow, appeared at Westminster Magistrates' Court on Thursday accused over the protest held in central London on January 18. The Metropolitan Police previously alleged that some protesters tried to breach conditions imposed on the protest by marching out of Whitehall. Both defendants appeared in court and spoke to confirm their identities and to plead not guilty. They were given unconditional bail by Judge Nina Tempia until their trial at City of London Magistrates' Court on March 10. Dozens of people attended a protest outside the court before the hearing, some with Palestine flags and others with banners. Speaking on stage outside the court before the hearing, Kenny said: 'We must continue to defend our right to protest as we are doing today.' Bolt also spoke, and said 'we know that this is an attack on the movement'.
The National
4 hours ago
- The National
Take new Corbyn-Sultana party 'seriously', polling expert tells Labour
Keiran Pedley, the research director, public affairs UK, for the polling firm Ipsos, said he thought the nascent party could 'pretty well' under Westminster's first-past-the-post voting system which 'rewards a geographical concentration of votes'. Writing on social media, Pedley said that the 'most important thing any new left wing party could do is have a simple name'. 'None of this united socialist workers of Great Britain yadda yadda nonsense,' he went on. READ MORE: Hedge fund boss and Labour donor buys Scottish island as last residents leave 'Something clean. The new left party or similar. Does what it says on the tin. See Brexit party for details.' Pedley's comments came after Professor John Curtice told The National that it was 'not inconceivable' that Labour Cabinet ministers including Prime Minister Keir Starmer, Health Secretary Wes Streeting, and Justice Secretary Shabana Mahmood could lose their seats at the next General Election. 'Just look at the size of their majorities and look at how far Labour's vote's fallen,' Curtice said. At the last election, Starmer's vote almost halved, Streeting's majority was reduced to just 528, and Mahmood's vote fell by 53%, all facing pro-Palestine independent challengers. Pro-Palestine independents took four seats at the 2024 election, most notably Labour shadow minister Jonathan Ashworth's defeat at the hands of Shockat Adam in Leicester South. Curtice, however, also questioned whether the new Corbyn-Sultana party could organise efficiently enough to be an electoral force. 'The crucial question is now: will the fight next year's local and devolved elections? Are they going to be up and ready? At the moment, they're engaging on a consultation about a name,' the polling expert said. He also noted that Sultana's initial public announcement of the new party appeared to have taken Corbyn by surprise. READ MORE: Scottish Government approves one of world's biggest wind farms amid controversy Earlier in the week, Corbyn announced that 600,000 people had signed up for the new party, outstripping Labour at its peak under his own leadership (at 565,000 in 2017). Corbyn said: 'Up and down the country, there is huge appetite for the policies that are needed to fix society in 2025: public ownership, wealth redistribution, housing justice, and a foreign policy based on peace and human rights. "For too long, people have been denied a real political choice. Not anymore. 600,000 people have already signed up to build a real alternative to inequality, poverty and war. This is just the beginning. 'We are an unstoppable movement for equality, democracy and peace – and we are never, ever going away.'
The Independent
4 hours ago
- The Independent
MG set to go small and large with MG2 and MGS6 electric cars
MG's all-electric range is set to grow even more in the next couple of years with the launch of two new models. Speaking at the launch of MG's new Tesla Model 3 and Model Y-rivalling IM5 and IM6 models, David Allison, MG UK's head of product and planning, told us that 'new electric models at the top and bottom of the current mainstream MG line-up would be logical'. That would mean an MG HS-sized SUV to sit above the new and already big-selling MGS5 model – likely to be called the MGS6 – but with a clear differentiation between that and the IM5 and IM6 models. Then a smaller supermini-sized EV to sit below the MG4 is expected to arrive. As the MG3 name is already taken by the brand's popular hybrid and petrol supermini, expect the smaller EV to be badged MG2. Our own images show what the bigger MG6S could look like, taking design cues from the MGS5 and applying it to a larger car about the same size as the MG HS. We'd expect the MG6S to use an extended version of the platform that the MG5S sits on and with a bigger batter – possibly up to 77kWh – to offer a range of more than 300 miles. The new MG6S would likely target other family-friendly electric models such as the Skoda Enyaq and Renault Scenic, with prices starting at around £34,000. The MG2 will have a clear eye on cost, especially with the Volkswagen ID. 2 set to launch at prices close to £20,000, so will only be available with a smaller battery – possibly around 50kWh – to offer a city-focused range of just over 200 miles. Our second image shows how MG could translate its latest design language from the MGS5 SUV into a sporty supermini with a hint of SUV to it. These new models highlight how MG's 115 dealers are set to offer a two-tier line up with the new IM5 and IM6 models sitting above the rest of the MG range. They'll be busy selling the new IM models this year, so expect the MG2 and MG6S to arrive some time in 2026.
