Elon Musk has long been voicing concerns about bias allegations on Wikipedia and sharing his worries about the platform’s financial independence. He also argued that this donation-driven structure should have its funds cut. In recent months, he criticized the fact that Wikipedia itself included a statement suggesting a gesture similar to a Nazi salute during Trump’s inauguration.
New project: With Grokipedia, Musk is proposing the idea of creating his own online encyclopedia. He claims that Grokipedia, developed using the xAI initiative, will be far superior to Wikipedia. The core of this venture, the Grok artificial intelligence, is trained by sourcing data from the internet and especially from shared content by large audiences.
With autonomous updating and oversight mechanisms, Grok is said to have the capacity to automatically update content, reducing the need for human editors to intervene. In a podcast, he stated that Grok can analyze a Wikipedia page to distinguish between accuracy, partial accuracy, and false information, and can fill in missing details. However, it’s a known weakness that Grok can also produce flawed outputs; in some cases, expressions praising Hitler may appear.
The competition’s difficulty means the exact launch date for Grokipedia is unclear. However, high interest is expected particularly among Musk supporters and users who consider Wikipedia biased. Meanwhile, Wikipedia remains the seventh most visited website worldwide, maintained with meticulous efforts by volunteer editors. Wikipedia’s founder, Jimmy Wales, responded to Musk’s criticisms, emphasizing that the platform focuses on accuracy and neutrality.
Looking ahead, Musk does not only plan to compete with Wikipedia; he also intends to make moves against major technology players. Last month, he announced a new initiative named Macrohard, aimed as a competitor to Microsoft, stating that he will develop AI-supported software solutions.
