State Officials Urge Elon Musk to Address AI Chatbot's Election Misinformation on X

Secretaries of state urge Elon Musk to fix AI chatbot spreading election misinformation on X

The top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington told Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, produced false information about state ballot deadlines shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. While Grok is available only to subscribers to the premium versions of X, the misinformation was shared across multiple social media platforms and reached millions of people, according to the letter. The bogus ballot deadline information from the chatbot also referenced Alabama, Indiana, Ohio and Texas, although their secretaries of state did not sign the letter. Grok continued to repeat the false information for 10 days before it was corrected, the secretaries said. The letter urged X to immediately fix the chatbot "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." That would include directing Grok to send users to CanIVote.org, a voting information website run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, when asked about U.S. elections. "In this presidential election year, it is critically important that voters get accurate information on how to exercise their right to vote," Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said in a statement. "Voters should reach out to their state or local election officials to find out how, when, and where they can vote." X did not respond to a request for comment. Grok debuted last year for X premium and premium plus subscribers and was touted by Musk as a "rebellious" AI chatbot that will answer "spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." Social media platforms have faced mounting scrutiny for their role in spreading misinformation, including about elections. The letter also warned that inaccuracies are to be expected for AI products, especially chatbots such as Grok that are based on large language models. "As tens of millions of voters in the U.S. seek basic information about voting in this major election year, X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," the secretaries wrote in the letter. Since Musk bought Twitter in 2022 and renamed it to X, watchdog groups have raised concerns over a surge in hate speech and misinformation being amplified on the platform, as well as the reduction of content moderation teams, elimination of misinformation features and censoring of journalists critical of Musk. Experts say the moves represent a regression from progress made by social media platforms attempting to better combat political disinformation after the 2016 U.S. presidential contest and could precipitate a worsening misinformation landscape ahead of this year's November elections. ___ The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP's democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Secretaries of state urge Elon Musk to fix AI chatbot spreading election misinformation on X

CHICAGO (AP) -- Five secretaries of state are urging Elon Musk to fix an AI chatbot on the social media platform X, saying in a letter sent Monday that it has spread election misinformation. The top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington told Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, produced false information about state ballot deadlines shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. While Grok is available only to subscribers to the premium versions of X, the misinformation was shared across multiple social media platforms and reached millions of people, according to the letter. The bogus ballot deadline information from the chatbot also referenced Alabama, Indiana, Ohio and Texas, although their secretaries of state did not sign the letter. Grok continued to repeat the false information for 10 days before it was corrected, the secretaries said. The letter urged X to immediately fix the chatbot "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." That would include directing Grok to send users to CanIVote.org, a voting information website run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, when asked about U.S. elections. "In this presidential election year, it is critically important that voters get accurate information on how to exercise their right to vote," Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said in a statement. "Voters should reach out to their state or local election officials to find out how, when, and where they can vote." X did not respond to a request for comment. Grok debuted last year for X premium and premium plus subscribers and was touted by Musk as a "rebellious" AI chatbot that will answer "spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." Social media platforms have faced mounting scrutiny for their role in spreading misinformation, including about elections. The letter also warned that inaccuracies are to be expected for AI products, especially chatbots such as Grok that are based on large language models. "As tens of millions of voters in the U.S. seek basic information about voting in this major election year, X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," the secretaries wrote in the letter. Since Musk bought Twitter in 2022 and renamed it to X, watchdog groups have raised concerns over a surge in hate speech and misinformation being amplified on the platform, as well as the reduction of content moderation teams, elimination of misinformation features and censoring of journalists critical of Musk. Experts say the moves represent a regression from progress made by social media platforms attempting to better combat political disinformation after the 2016 U.S. presidential contest and could precipitate a worsening misinformation landscape ahead of this year's November elections. ___ The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP's democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content.

Secretaries of State Urge Elon Musk to Fix AI Chatbot Spreading Election Misinformation on X

CHICAGO (AP) -- Five secretaries of state are urging Elon Musk to fix an AI chatbot on the social media platform X, saying in a letter sent Monday that it has spread election misinformation. The top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington told Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, produced false information about state ballot deadlines shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. While Grok is available only to subscribers to the premium versions of X, the misinformation was shared across multiple social media platforms and reached millions of people, according to the letter. The bogus ballot deadline information from the chatbot also referenced Alabama, Indiana, Ohio and Texas, although their secretaries of state did not sign the letter. Grok continued to repeat the false information for 10 days before it was corrected, the secretaries said. The letter urged X to immediately fix the chatbot "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." That would include directing Grok to send users to CanIVote.org, a voting information website run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, when asked about U.S. elections. "In this presidential election year, it is critically important that voters get accurate information on how to exercise their right to vote," Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said in a statement. "Voters should reach out to their state or local election officials to find out how, when, and where they can vote." X did not respond to a request for comment. Grok debuted last year for X premium and premium plus subscribers and was touted by Musk as a "rebellious" AI chatbot that will answer "spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." Social media platforms have faced mounting scrutiny for their role in spreading misinformation, including about elections. The letter also warned that inaccuracies are to be expected for AI products, especially chatbots such as Grok that are based on large language models. "As tens of millions of voters in the U.S. seek basic information about voting in this major election year, X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," the secretaries wrote in the letter. Since Musk bought Twitter in 2022 and renamed it to X, watchdog groups have raised concerns over a surge in hate speech and misinformation being amplified on the platform, as well as the reduction of content moderation teams, elimination of misinformation features and censoring of journalists critical of Musk. Experts say the moves represent a regression from progress made by social media platforms attempting to better combat political disinformation after the 2016 U.S. presidential contest and could precipitate a worsening misinformation landscape ahead of this year's November elections. ___ The Associated Press receives support from several private foundations to enhance its explanatory coverage of elections and democracy. See more about AP's democracy initiative here. The AP is solely responsible for all content. Copyright 2024 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

Five US states push Elon Musk to fix AI chatbot over election misinformation

Secretaries of state from five U.S. states asked Elon Musk to fix X's AI chatbot Grok, which circulated false election information. They cited an incident where the chatbot incorrectly stated Kamala Harris missed certain ballot deadlines. The officials emphasized the need for accurate voter information ahead of the November elections.Secretaries of state from five U.S. states urged billionaire Elon Musk on Monday to fix social media platform X's AI chatbot, saying it had spread misinformation related to the Nov. 5 election. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Social media platforms, including X, have been under scrutiny for years over the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories, including false information about elections and vaccines. There has been growing concern in Washington that AI-generated content could mislead voters in the November presidential and congressional elections. Since Musk bought the platform formerly called Twitter in 2022, civil rights groups have raised concerns over a rise in hate speech and misinformation due to reduced content moderation. Musk, who last month endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, himself has been accused of spreading misinformation. For example, he has said, without evidence, that Democrats are allowing migrants to cross the southern border so that they can vote in federal elections, even though they are ineligible to do so. KEY QUOTES "As Secretaries of State whose offices and 37 million constituents were recently impacted by false information provided by your platform, we are calling on you to immediately implement changes to X's AI search assistant, Grok, to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year," the officials from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington, Michigan and New Mexico said in an open letter to Musk. After Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden stepped aside as presidential candidate on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the chatbot, Grok, falsely told social media users that Harris had missed the ballot deadline in nine states. "This is false. In all nine states the opposite is true," the letter from the secretaries of state added. CONTEXT Musk said in March that Grok - a chatbot from artificial intelligence startup xAI - would be enabled for all premium subscribers of X. The officials said in their letter that even though the chatbot is only available to premium users, its misinformation was shared with millions of people on social media. The officials said that X should direct Grok users to CanIVote.org, a nonpartisan website on U.S. voting information, when asked about U.S. elections. The social media platform did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter.

Five US States Push Musk to Fix AI Chatbot Over Election Misinformation

WASHINGTON (Reuters) - Secretaries of state from five U.S. states urged billionaire Elon Musk on Monday to fix social media platform X's AI chatbot, saying it had spread misinformation related to the Nov. 5 election. WHY IT'S IMPORTANT Social media platforms, including X, have been under scrutiny for years over the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories, including false information about elections and vaccines. There has been growing concern in Washington that AI-generated content could mislead voters in the November presidential and congressional elections. Since Musk bought the platform formerly called Twitter in 2022, civil rights groups have raised concerns over a rise in hate speech and misinformation due to reduced content moderation. Musk, who last month endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, himself has been accused of spreading misinformation. For example, he has said, without evidence, that Democrats are allowing migrants to cross the southern border so that they can vote in federal elections, even though they are ineligible to do so. KEY QUOTES "As Secretaries of State whose offices and 37 million constituents were recently impacted by false information provided by your platform, we are calling on you to immediately implement changes to X's AI search assistant, Grok, to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year," the officials from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington, Michigan and New Mexico said in an open letter to Musk. After Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden stepped aside as presidential candidate on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the chatbot, Grok, falsely told social media users that Harris had missed the ballot deadline in nine states. "This is false. In all nine states the opposite is true," the letter from the secretaries of state added. CONTEXT Musk said in March that Grok - a chatbot from artificial intelligence startup xAI - would be enabled for all premium subscribers of X. The officials said in their letter that even though the chatbot is only available to premium users, its misinformation was shared with millions of people on social media. The officials said that X should direct Grok users to CanIVote.org, a nonpartisan website on U.S. voting information, when asked about U.S. elections. The social media platform did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Chandni Shah, editing by Deepa Babington)

Five US states push Musk to fix AI chatbot over election misinformation

WASHINGTON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - Secretaries of state from five U.S. states urged billionaire Elon Musk on Monday to fix social media platform X's AI chatbot, saying it had spread misinformation related to the Nov. 5 election. Social media platforms, including X, have been under scrutiny for years over the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories, including false information about elections and vaccines. There has been growing concern in Washington that AI-generated content could mislead voters in the November presidential and congressional elections. Since Musk bought the platform formerly called Twitter in 2022, civil rights groups have raised concerns over a rise in hate speech and misinformation due to reduced content moderation. Musk, who last month endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, himself has been accused of spreading misinformation. For example, he has said, without evidence, that Democrats are allowing migrants to cross the southern border so that they can vote in federal elections, even though they are ineligible to do so. "As Secretaries of State whose offices and 37 million constituents were recently impacted by false information provided by your platform, we are calling on you to immediately implement changes to X's AI search assistant, Grok, to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year," the officials from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington, Michigan and New Mexico said in an open letter to Musk. After Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden stepped aside as presidential candidate on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the chatbot, Grok, falsely told social media users that Harris had missed the ballot deadline in nine states. "This is false. In all nine states the opposite is true," the letter from the secretaries of state added. Musk said in March that Grok - a chatbot from artificial intelligence startup xAI - would be enabled for all premium subscribers of X. The officials said in their letter that even though the chatbot is only available to premium users, its misinformation was shared with millions of people on social media. The officials said that X should direct Grok users to CanIVote.org, a nonpartisan website on U.S. voting information, when asked about U.S. elections. The social media platform did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Chandni Shah, editing by Deepa Babington)

Minnesota secretary of state joins call for Elon Musk to fix X's AI chatbot from spreading election lies

Five secretaries of state are urging Elon Musk to fix an AI chatbot on the social media platform X, saying in a letter sent Monday that it has spread election misinformation. The top election officials from Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington told Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, produced false information about state ballot deadlines shortly after President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race. While Grok is available only to subscribers to the premium versions of X, the misinformation was shared across multiple social media platforms and reached millions of people, according to the letter. The bogus ballot deadline information from the chatbot also referenced Alabama, Indiana, Ohio and Texas, although their secretaries of state did not sign the letter. Grok continued to repeat the false information for 10 days before it was corrected, the secretaries said. The letter urged X to immediately fix the chatbot "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." That would include directing Grok to send users to CanIVote.org, a voting information website run by the National Association of Secretaries of State, when asked about U.S. elections. "In this presidential election year, it is critically important that voters get accurate information on how to exercise their right to vote," Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon said in a statement. "Voters should reach out to their state or local election officials to find out how, when, and where they can vote." X did not respond to a request for comment. Grok debuted last year for X premium and premium plus subscribers and was touted by Musk as a "rebellious" AI chatbot that will answer "spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." Social media platforms have faced mounting scrutiny for their role in spreading misinformation, including about elections. The letter also warned that inaccuracies are to be expected for AI products, especially chatbots such as Grok that are based on large language models. "As tens of millions of voters in the U.S. seek basic information about voting in this major election year, X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," the secretaries wrote in the letter. Since Musk bought Twitter in 2022 and renamed it to X, watchdog groups have raised concerns over a surge in hate speech and misinformation being amplified on the platform, as well as the reduction of content moderation teams, elimination of misinformation features and censoring of journalists critical of Musk. Experts say the moves represent a regression from progress made by social media platforms attempting to better combat political disinformation after the 2016 U.S. presidential contest and could precipitate a worsening misinformation landscape ahead of this year's November elections.

Five US states push Musk to fix AI chatbot over election misinformation

Social media platforms, including X, have been under scrutiny for years over the spread of misinformation and conspiracy theories, including false information about elections and vaccines. There has been growing concern in Washington that AI-generated content could mislead voters in the November presidential and congressional elections. Since Musk bought the platform formerly called Twitter in 2022, civil rights groups have raised concerns over a rise in hate speech and misinformation due to reduced content moderation. Musk, who last month endorsed Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump, himself has been accused of spreading misinformation. For example, he has said, without evidence, that Democrats are allowing migrants to cross the southern border so that they can vote in federal elections, even though they are ineligible to do so. "As Secretaries of State whose offices and 37 million constituents were recently impacted by false information provided by your platform, we are calling on you to immediately implement changes to X's AI search assistant, Grok, to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year," the officials from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington, Michigan and New Mexico said in an open letter to Musk. After Democratic U.S. President Joe Biden stepped aside as presidential candidate on July 21 and endorsed Vice President Kamala Harris, the chatbot, Grok, falsely told social media users that Harris had missed the ballot deadline in nine states. "This is false. In all nine states the opposite is true," the letter from the secretaries of state added. Musk said in March that Grok - a chatbot from artificial intelligence startup xAI - would be enabled for all premium subscribers of X. The officials said in their letter that even though the chatbot is only available to premium users, its misinformation was shared with millions of people on social media. The officials said that X should direct Grok users to CanIVote.org, a nonpartisan website on U.S. voting information, when asked about U.S. elections. The social media platform did not immediately respond to a request for comment on the letter. (Reporting by Kanishka Singh and Chandni Shah, editing by Deepa Babington)

Secretaries Of State Tell Elon Musk To Stop AI Bot From Spreading Election Lies

Five states' top election officials said it took 10 days before X corrected election misinformation that Grok shared to millions. Top election officials from five states sent a letter on Monday calling for billionaire Elon Musk to stop the AI chatbot he created from spreading election misinformation on X, formerly Twitter. The letter -- signed by secretaries of state from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Michigan, Washington state and New Mexico -- demanded that Musk "immediately implement changes" to X's AI search assistant, Grok, "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." Musk revealed Grok on X last November, branding the chatbot an unfiltered alternative to large language models like ChatGPT. He had derisively called companies like OpenAI and Google "woke" for implementing guardrails intended to help the tools more carefully approach sensitive and controversial topics. "Please don't use it if you hate humor!" xAI, Musk's artificial intelligence company, said at the time of Grok's unveiling. But the secretaries of state voiced concern over Grok's role in spreading lies related to the 2024 presidential election, pointing to an instance last month in which the chatbot produced misinformation about ballot deadlines just hours after President Joe Biden announced he was no longer seeking reelection. Grok's post wrongly claimed that presumptive Democratic nominee and Vice President Kamala Harris had missed the ballot deadline for the November election in Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington. Many of those states are expected to be key battleground areas that could heavily sway the race. "This is false," the letter said of Grok's claim. "In all nine states the opposite is true: The ballots are not closed, and upcoming ballot deadlines would allow for changes to candidates listed on the ballot for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States." Grok is currently only available to X Premium and Premium+ subscribers, and the bot has a disclaimer asking users to verify the information it produces. However, the ballot deadline misinformation from Grok managed to be captured and shared in more publicly accessible posts that reached millions, according to the secretaries of state. The chatbot's misinformation was only corrected 10 days later. "As tens of millions of voters in the U.S. seek basic information about voting in this major election year, X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," stated the letter, first obtained by The Washington Post. The secretaries of state urged X to implement a policy of directing Grok users asking about U.S. elections to "CanIVote.org," which the officials said is a nonpartisan resource from professional election administrators of both Democratic and Republican parties. OpenAI partnered with secretaries of state this year to provide more accurate election information, and ChatGPT is already programmed to direct its users to the website when asked about the elections. A spokesperson for X did not answer HuffPost's request for comment, sending an automatic response that said, "Busy now, please check back later." The company's delayed response to Grok's misinformation was "the equivalent of a shoulder shrug," according to Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon, who spearheaded the letter. "It's important that social media companies, especially those with global reach, correct mistakes of their own making - as in the case of the Grok AI chatbot simply getting the rules wrong," Simon told the Post. "Speaking out now will hopefully reduce the risk that any social media company will decline or delay correction of its own mistakes between now and the November election."

Secretaries of state call on Musk to fix chatbot over election misinformation

X's Grok AI chatbot falsely told users 'ballot deadline has passed for several states' Five secretaries of state plan to send a letter to Elon Musk calling on the billionaire owner of X to make changes to the social media platform's Grok AI chatbot after it gave users misinformation about Kamala Harris appearing on the 2024 White House ballot in certain states. Grok told users that the ballots were "locked and loaded" and that "the ballot deadline has passed for several states". "So, if you're planning to run for president in any of these states, you might want to check if you've already missed the boat. But hey, there's always 2028, right?" the chatbot told users. But the ballot deadlines in the nine states listed by Grok - Alabama, Indiana, Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Texas and Washington - have not passed. And there will not be any impediment for vice-president to run in those states for the presidency. The secretaries of state for five of those states - Michigan, Minnesota, New Mexico, Pennsylvania and Washington - are calling on Musk to update Grok with accurate information about the presidential election, according to the Washington Post. Minnesota's secretary of state, Steve Simon, emphasized that the misinformation has reached millions of X users. "There is considerable reach here for this misinformation," Simon told the Minneapolis Star Tribune. "It's being repeated and it's being shared over and over again. What else are we going to see on Grok? What else are we going to see on X that perpetuates bad information?" When he reached out to X with concerns, Simon said he got "what I can only verbalize as the equivalent of a shoulder shrug". Simon told the Post that he reached out to fellow secretaries of state - who are in charge of administering the election - in the nine states mentioned by Grok. All five who agreed to sign the letter are Democrats with the exception of Pennsylvania's Al Schmidt, a Republican who was appointed by Democratic governor Josh Shapiro, a Harris running mate contender. Grok was unveiled last November as a feature for X premium and premium plus subscribers, the plans for which cost $3 and $16 monthly. Musk framed Grok as an alternative, "rebellious" AI chatbot who will answer "spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems". In their letter, the secretaries of state mention that OpenAI - the company behind ChatGPT - worked with the National Association of Secretaries of State to ensure the chatbot gives users correct information about voting, directing them to CanIVote.org for more details. Over the last few months, Musk has been amping up his support of Donald Trump, who the billionaire has endorsed. While most tech billionaires stay mum about the election, Musk has put his weight behind a super political action committee, America PAC, which has run advertising supporting the former president. Musk said the group supports "meritocracy and individual freedom". In one ad, which shows footage from Trump's failed 13 July assassination attempt, users from swing states who end up clicking on a "Register to Vote" link are taken to a page where they submit detailed information - including address, age and phone number - into a form that ultimately gives their data to the America PAC, according to CNBC. While Musk has said that his vision for X, after he acquired it in 2022, was to turn it into a "public square", Simon told the Post that spreading misinformation goes beyond moderating different voices in a public forum. "This is a case where the owner of the public square [the social media company itself] is the one who introduced and spread the bad information - and then delayed correcting its own mistake after it knew that the information was false," he said.

Secretaries of State say X's AI shared false election information

The X headquarters in San Francisco, on July 28, 2023.Noah Berger / AP file Five secretaries of state on Monday urged Elon Musk to fix his social media platform X's artificial intelligence search assistant after it allegedly shared false information about the 2024 presidential election. Within hours of Biden dropping out, a Grok post claimed, 'The ballot deadline has passed for several states for the 2024 election,'" according to the letter to Musk from the secretaries of state, who oversee their states' elections. The post claimed that those states included the key battlegrounds of Pennsylvania, Michigan, Minnesota and New Mexico, along with Alabama, Indiana, Ohio, Texas and Washington, according to the letter, which was sent on the letterhead of Minnesota Secretary of State Steve Simon. "In all nine states the opposite is true," said the letter, which was first reported by The Washington Post. "The ballots are not closed, and upcoming ballot deadlines would allow for changes to candidates listed on the ballot for the offices of President and Vice President of the United States," the letter said. The letter was signed by Simon and co-signed by Al Schmidt of Pennsylvania, Simon Steve Hobbs of Washington, Michigan's Jocelyn Benson and Maggie Toulouse Oliver of New Mexico. Schmidt is a Republican. The four other signatories are Democrats. CNBC has requested comment on the letter from Musk. Musk has previously said that he created and is donating to a political action committee that is supporting Trump and Republicans. That group, America PAC, is being investigated by Benson's office over its efforts to collect voter data in key swing states. In Monday's letter, the secretaries of state wrote that Grok's false claim was "shared on multiple social media platforms" within hours of Biden's announcement. The letter noted that Grok is only available to X Premium and Premium+ subscribers and that it carries a disclaimer asking users to verify its answers. But "the false information about ballot deadlines has been captured and shared repeatedly in multiple posts -- reaching millions of people," the officials wrote. "Furthermore, Grok continued to repeat this false information for more than a week until it was corrected on July 31, 2024," the letter alleged. The letter also urged X to follow the lead of OpenAI's ChatGPT, which has been programmed to direct users to the nonpartisan site CanIVote.org when asked about U.S. elections.

Musk's AI chatbot spread election misinformation, secretaries of state say

Driving the news: Secretaries of state from Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Washington, Michigan and New Mexico told Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, had produced and circulated "false information on ballot deadlines" shortly after President Biden withdrew from the 2024 race, according to the letter, obtained by Axios. Flashback: Musk's social media platform debuted Grok last year, saying it would "answer spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." State of play: While Grok is only available to X Premium and Premium+ subscribers, the letter claimed that its false information was "shared repeatedly in multiple posts -- reaching millions of people." The bottom line: "X has the responsibility to ensure all voters using your platform have access to guidance that reflects true and accurate information about their constitutional right to vote," the letter concluded.

Washington and 4 other states ask Musk to curb election AI misinformation on X

Zoom in: In the letter, Washington Secretary of State Steve Hobbs joined secretaries of state in Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Michigan and New Mexico in telling Musk that X's AI chatbot, Grok, had produced and circulated "false information on ballot deadlines" shortly after President Biden withdrew from the 2024 race. The secretaries of state urged Musk to "immediately implement changes" to Grok "to ensure voters have accurate information in this critical election year." Catch up quick: Musk's social media platform debuted Grok last year, saying it would "answer spicy questions that are rejected by most other AI systems." What they're saying: "Voters should not be misled about how our elections function," Hobbs said in a press release Monday. Go deeper: