U.S. News
‘Truth-Seeking’ or Self-Serving? Elon Musk Launches AI-Powered Rival to Wikipedia
By Jake Beardslee · October 28, 2025
Musk Launches New "Grokipedia" Platform
Elon Musk has released Grokipedia, an AI-driven online encyclopedia that he describes as a less biased alternative to Wikipedia. The site, which went live Monday, mirrors Wikipedia’s familiar design but includes fewer entries and a noticeably more conservative tone in its presentation of certain topics. Saul Loeb-Pool via Imagn Images
A Right-Leaning Take on Familiar Subjects
While Wikipedia’s entry on gender opens with “Gender is the range of social, psychological, cultural, and behavioral aspects of being a man (or boy), woman (or girl), or third gender,” Grokipedia begins with: “Gender refers to the binary classification of humans as male or female based on biological sex....” Časopis Respekt, Pavel Reisenauer, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
AI Integration Through Grok
The project leverages Grok, the large language model created by Musk’s company xAI, also behind the chatbot integrated into X (formerly Twitter). Grokipedia appears to draw from Grok’s existing AI architecture, meaning it could theoretically incorporate posts from millions of X users to update content dynamically. However, that same reliance raises concerns about misinformation, given Grok’s history of controversial missteps — including spreading conspiracy theories and generating offensive content. X.AI Corp. / Wikimedia Commons
A Flattering Portrait of Musk Himself
Unlike Wikipedia’s more measured tone, Grokipedia’s entry on Musk describes his endeavors in highly laudatory language. It claims that his AI initiatives “emphasize AI safety through truth-oriented development rather than heavy regulation,” and that his releases “reflect xAI’s rapid iteration, with Musk highlighting Grok’s design for maximal truth-seeking and reduced censorship.” The page concludes with a section titled “Recognition and Long-Term Vision,” asserting that Musk’s mission centers on “safeguarding human consciousness against existential threats” and achieving “a self-sustaining multi-planetary civilization.” MINISTÉRIO DAS COMUNICAÇÕES, CC BY 2.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/2.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Errors and Questionable Citations
Some Grokipedia entries have already drawn scrutiny for inaccuracies. One article falsely claimed that Ohio political figure Vivek Ramaswamy took “a more prominent role” in the U.S. DOGE Service after Musk’s departure — a statement contradicted by public records. The page cited the BBC and Al Jazeera as sources, though neither outlet made that claim. Albert Cesare/The Enquirer / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images
Controversial Coverage of Political Events
Grokipedia’s entry on the January 6, 2021, Capitol attack mixed verified facts with editorialized claims suggesting Democrats and the media exaggerated the riot’s severity and Donald Trump’s involvement. Such content has raised concerns that Grokipedia may become a partisan echo chamber rather than a neutral repository of information. Elijah Mears / Unsplash
From Admiration to Opposition
Musk’s relationship with Wikipedia has soured dramatically. In 2017, he tweeted, “I love Wikipedia. Just gets better over time.” But more recently, he has accused the site of liberal bias, writing earlier this year: “Defund Wikipedia until balance is restored!” Musk has aligned with other critics — including Wikipedia’s ousted co-founder — who argue the platform unfairly favors left-leaning perspectives on polarizing topics such as vaccines and climate change. Daniel Oberhaus, CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
Critics Question Grokipedia's Foundation
Observers suggest that despite its claims of independence, Grokipedia still relies heavily on the same volunteer-edited knowledge base it seeks to challenge. “Every major AI system trains on Wikipedia’s freely licensed knowledge,” journalist Stephen Harrison said. “The irony is that Grokipedia will be built on the unpaid labor of the volunteer Wikipedia editors Musk has gone out of his way to vilify.”Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales expressed skepticism about the new venture, telling The Washington Post: “AI language models aren’t good enough to write encyclopedia articles. There will be a lot of errors.” ZMcCune (WMF), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons
An Unsteady Launch
The site went live quietly, branded “Grokipedia v0.1,” featuring only a minimalist homepage and search bar. Initially boasting 885,000 articles — a fraction of Wikipedia’s 8 million — the platform briefly went offline within an hour of launch before returning later that evening. Musk had delayed the rollout by a week, claiming, “We need to do more work to purge out the propaganda.” ZMcCune (WMF), CC BY-SA 4.0 https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0, via Wikimedia Commons