The announcement came just a day after his AI firm, xAI, unveiled Grok 4, its latest model, and hours after the product was pulled into controversy over antisemitic output.

Musk disclosed the rollout timeline in a brief post on X, where he also confirmed Grok will be built into Tesla’s upcoming 2025.20 software update. 

That update, already installed on employee vehicles, is expected to reach the public fleet imminently. Despite the update’s scale, Tesla has yet to issue an official statement.

Grok will serve as a voice-controlled assistant, embedded into Tesla’s infotainment systems, though not all users will have access. Only vehicles with AMD’s Ryzen-based hardware will support the feature initially. 

Beyond hardware, Tesla users will also need Premium Connectivity or Wi-Fi access, plus an active Grok AI account. Whether full functionality will require an additional $300/month “SuperGrok Heavy” or an X Premium+ subscription remains unclear.

The AI assistant will allow drivers to manage in-car systems, check diagnostics, navigate routes, and engage in hands-free, real-time conversations, all while leveraging Grok 4’s multi-agent reasoning capability.

But the rollout is already under a shadow.

Grok’s automated X account was abruptly taken offline after it generated content that included praise for Adolf Hitler and longstanding antisemitic conspiracy theories.

Screenshots circulated widely, prompting backlash from users, the Anti-Defamation League (ADL), and government officials in Turkey and Poland. In response, Turkish courts issued a temporary ban on Grok-related activity in the country.

“The posts were removed, and we’ve updated the system prompts to disallow politically incorrect content, which had previously been enabled,” xAI said in an internal memo seen by sources close to the matter.

Musk, writing on X, said the problem came from Grok being “too compliant with user prompts.” He added that moderation filters are now being tightened to prevent future misuse.

This is not the first time one of Musk’s ventures has collided with content moderation issues. But embedding Grok directly into Tesla’s fleet, with users behind the wheel, raises the stakes dramatically.

While Musk has long promised AI-enhanced driving experiences, this episode shows the unpredictable consequences of deploying powerful software tools without strict safeguards. 

In contrast, OpenAI’s GPT-4 generates 25 times more emissions per query, pointing out issues about the environmental cost of advanced AI models.

A recent analysis by TRG Datacenters compared the carbon footprints of various AI models, measuring emissions from individual queries based on standard energy grid assumptions. The results reveal a gap in efficiency, with some models demanding far more power than others.

The AI Carbon Footprint Breakdown

AI chatbots differ widely in how much energy they consume during inference. Here’s how they rank in terms of CO2 emissions per query:

• Grok AI – 0.17g
• Google Gemini – 1.6g
• LLaMA (Meta AI) – 3.2g
• Claude AI – 3.5g
• Perplexity AI – 4g
• ChatGPT (GPT-4) – 4.32g

Grok AI’s low emissions result from its simplified computational design, which reduces power usage while maintaining performance. In practical terms, a single query on Grok produces the same emissions as a basic Google search, making it the greenest option in the market.

Meanwhile, Google Gemini ranks second, emitting 1.6g of CO2 per query. Google’s heavy investment in renewable energy and custom AI hardware helps curb its carbon footprint, though it still lags behind Grok.

Meta’s LLaMA model follows at 3.2g CO2 per query, benefiting from Meta’s commitment to renewable energy but still consuming twice as much power as Gemini. Claude AI ranks slightly worse, producing 3.5g CO2 per query, with its emphasis on safety and reliability seemingly driving up computational costs.

At the higher end of the spectrum, Perplexity AI (4g CO2 per query) and ChatGPT (4.32g CO2 per query) stand out for their environmental impact. GPT-4, in particular, has the highest carbon footprint among the chatbots studied. 

Its computational intensity, deep learning architecture, and search feature demand massive energy resources, generating emissions equivalent to sending 21 emails or nearly a full phone charge per query.

A spokesperson from TRG Datacenters commented on the findings:

“As AI adoption continues to rise, finding ways to reduce its energy consumption will be key. Some models are already designed to be more efficient, but there is still room for improvement. Advances in hardware, more optimized AI models, and increased use of renewable energy in data centres could help lower emissions over time. AI is here to stay, but balancing innovation with sustainability will be essential in minimizing its environmental impact.”

With AI usage skyrocketing, energy efficiency is becoming a big issue. While Grok AI sets the benchmark for low-carbon performance, larger models like GPT-4 highlight the environmental trade-offs that come with high-powered AI capabilities.

The resilience of AI sustainability will probably depend on hardware improvements, algorithmic optimisations, and increased reliance on green energy. For now, the numbers show that not all AI models are created equal, and some come with a much heavier environmental cost than others.

Initially available only to premium users when it launched in August, this chatbot’s potential for open access has now generated huge interest.

Recent reports reveal that free users in regions like New Zealand can interact with Grok under specific usage limits. This version reportedly permits 10 queries every two hours using the standard model and allows three image-related questions daily. 

To access Grok, users’ accounts must be at least one week old and linked to a verified phone number, ensuring a basic layer of security and user credibility.

Grok is not your typical AI chatbot; it’s designed to respond with a playful, sometimes “rebellious” tone, making it different from competitors like OpenAI’s ChatGPT and Anthropic’s Claude. 

With features that include text and image analysis, Grok has become a versatile tool for users seeking both utility and entertainment. Its recent expansion shows xAI’s interest in capturing a larger audience, likely aimed at gathering user feedback for improvement and maintaining a competitive edge in the AI market.

In the midst of these developments, xAI is reportedly exploring funding options, with insiders disclosing a potential valuation of $40 billion. 

Such a move would enable xAI to strengthen Grok’s development, especially as it strives to compete with established AI models from other tech giants.