Elon Musk’s xAI Partners with Telegram for $300 Million Grok Chatbot Launch

Elon Musk’s startup, xAI, has entered into a significant partnership with the messaging platform Telegram, committing $300 million to launch its Grok artificial intelligence chatbot. Telegram’s CEO, Pavel Durov, announced this year-long collaboration, emphasizing that it bolsters the company’s financial standing. In addition to the substantial payment, Telegram is set to receive 50% of the revenue generated from xAI subscriptions sold on its platform. Durov expressed optimism that Telegram users will soon access cutting-edge AI technology. Notably, Telegram has surpassed 1 billion monthly users and is pursuing a $1.5 billion bond issuance. Nevertheless, Durov faces legal scrutiny in France for alleged criminal activities occurring on Telegram, leading to his arrest and restrictions on his travel. Despite these challenges, the company insists it complies with EU regulations. There have been controversies surrounding the Grok chatbot, which faced backlash after inappropriate responses were reported, attributed to unauthorized modifications. xAI is currently taking steps to improve the transparency and reliability of its chatbot following this incident.

Source: CNBC