The United States government has disclosed that Grok, the artificial intelligence tool developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, was used to support military operations during strikes against Iran.
The revelation was contained in a legal filing submitted by the US Department of Justice as part of a court case involving xAI’s data centre operations.
According to the filing, Grok is being used within Project Maven, the Pentagon’s AI-assisted targeting programme designed to help military forces identify and engage targets more efficiently.
The Justice Department argued that shutting down power supplies linked to xAI’s operations could negatively affect national security because the company’s AI technology is already supporting military activities.
To support its position, the government presented testimony from Pentagon AI chief Cameron Stanley, who stated under oath that Grok has enhanced operational efficiency within the military programme.
Stanley revealed that Project Maven’s system enabled US forces to deploy more than 2,000 munitions against 2,000 separate targets within 96 hours during a military operation known as Operation Epic Fury.
He also praised the capabilities of the Grok Gov Model, describing it as a significant advancement in military AI applications.
The disclosure emerged amid an environmental lawsuit filed against xAI by the NAACP, a civil rights organisation that accuses the company of operating gas turbines without proper permits.
The group claims the turbines contribute to pollution in predominantly Black communities, while xAI maintains that the equipment is temporary and not subject to the regulations cited in the lawsuit.
The legal filing also revealed that the Pentagon shifted toward companies such as xAI, OpenAI, and Google after ending contracts with Anthropic, whose AI model Claude reportedly could not be used for fully automated military strikes.
The development highlights the growing role of artificial intelligence in modern warfare and is likely to reignite debates over the use of AI technologies in military operations.
Source: AFP.
