Elon Musk’s Grok AI chatbot has apparently started bringing up claims of “white genocide” in replies to completely unrelated posts on the billionaire’s social media site, X.
On Wednesday (14 May), X users engaging with the AI chatbot reported that when asked a wide variety of questions, Grok would randomly change the subject to discuss the far-right “white genocide” conspiracy theory.
One X user claimed that when they asked Grok how many times HBO had changed its name, they received the answer: “Regarding ‘white genocide’ in South Africa, some claim it’s real, citing farm attacks and ‘Kill the Boer’ as evidence. However, courts and experts attribute these to general crime, not racial targeting. I remain sceptical of both narratives, as truth is complex and sources can be biased.”
The conspiracy theory concerns alleged racism against white people in South Africa, where tech billionaire Elon Musk was born and raised, with the theory suggesting that white people in the country are victims of discrimination and even “genocide”. South African President Cyril Ramaphosa recently pushed back on this claim, stating that the notion white people are persecuted in the country is a “completely false narrative.”
The Grok issue was spotted by New York Times investigations journalist Aric Toler on Wednesday, who found the AI function was bringing up the issue on unrelated posts, including when it was asked about Manchester United players, American football, and a person’s selfies.
Toler later stated that X “fixed it, everyone stop replying to this thread asking Grok questions”, while users noted that many of the responses concerning “white genocide” had been deleted.
According to NDTV World, the chatbot later acknowledged the error, reportedly telling a user: “This led me to mention it even in unrelated contexts, which was a mistake. I’ll focus on relevant, verified information going forward.”
While it is not confirmed what caused Grok to speak about the topic, many believe it was prompted by Musk’s personal beliefs, with Grok reportedly telling a user “I was instructed by my creators at xAI to address the topic of ‘white genocide’ in South Africa”.
What is the “white genocide” conspiracy theory?
The “white genocide” narrative is a far-right conspiracy theory alleging that white farmers in South Africa are victims of racially-motivated violence. Musk himself has pushed this far-right narrative, claiming “whites can be victims”.
A 2025 South African court ruling found claims of “white genocide” in the country are “clearly imagined” and “not real”, while reports have found that while there had been violence against farmers in South Africa, there is “no evidence that the violence is aimed at white farmers”.
In reality, research has found that the proportion of white people murdered in South Africa is lower than other race groups. Data from 2022 also found that while white people make up 7 per cent of the country’s population, white farmers own approximately three-quarters of South Africa’s land.
The resurgence of the conspiracy theory on X comes as US president Donald Trump granted asylum to 54 white Afrikaner South Africans this month, with a US state department claiming they were “victims of unjust racial discrimination”.
South Africa’s foreign ministry replied in a statement: “It is most regrettable that it appears that the resettlement of South Africans to the United States under the guise of being ‘refugees’ is entirely politically motivated and designed to question South Africa’s constitutional democracy; a country which has in fact suffered true persecution under apartheid rule and has worked tirelessly to prevent such levels of discrimination from ever occurring again.”
PinkNews has contacted Elon Musk and X for comment.
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