xAI's Grok Chatbot to Go Open Source, Musk Takes Aim at OpenAI

Elon Musk, a vocal critic of OpenAI's shift towards a profit-driven model, is championing the accessibility of artificial intelligence (AI). Musk has announced that his AI startup, xAI, will open source its Grok chatbot this week.

"This week, @xAI will open source Grok," Musk declared on X (formerly Twitter).

Open-sourcing a software like a chatbot means making its source code freely available and redistributable. This approach offers enterprises greater flexibility in problem-solving, enabling them to explore multiple solutions instead of relying solely on internal teams.

"OpenAI is a lie"

Amidst this announcement, a user suggested that OpenAI should follow suit and open source their AI models. "OpenAI should do the same if they are ‘open’ that is," the user posted. Musk responded with a pointed, "OpenAI is a lie."

Musk has been a long-time proponent of open-source AI.

Musk's Advocacy for Open-Source AI

During a podcast appearance last November with Lex Fridman, Musk expressed his preference for open-source development. "I am generally in favour of open sourcing, like biassed towards open sourcing," he stated.

These comments followed xAI's release of Grok, their chatbot, which reportedly took four months to develop. OpenAI CEO Sam Altman responded to this by building Grok with a single prompt on GPT Builder.

"GPTs can save a lot of effort:" Altman said.

Musk, did not appreciate the comment and replied with a long-ish message saying “GPT-4 is about as funny as a screendoor on a submarine.”