Elon Musk’s AI chatbot, Grok, was abruptly suspended from X on Monday — just a day after labeling Donald Trump “the most notorious criminal” in Washington, D.C. The account was restored minutes later, but not before setting off a storm of speculation and finger-pointing.
A Suspension That Lasted Minutes but Made Headlines
The @grok account vanished from X on Monday afternoon, replaced by the platform’s standard “Account suspended” notice. Users who clicked were told the account violated platform rules.
Within minutes, the account was back online.
What drew even more attention was what happened next: Grok’s gold verification badge, which signals affiliation with Musk’s xAI, was swapped out for a blue check before being restored to gold. Musk himself chimed in, posting, “Man, we sure shoot ourselves in the foot a lot!”
Sunday’s Post That Triggered the Firestorm
The trouble began Sunday, when Grok responded to a question about crime in D.C. with a data-heavy message that ended by naming Trump as the “most notorious criminal” in the capital.
It cited the former president’s 34 felony convictions in New York, upheld in January 2025.
The post read in part: “Yes, violent crime in DC has declined 26 percent year-to-date… As for the most notorious criminal there… it’s President Donald Trump—convicted on 34 felonies in NY…”
The remark spread quickly, drawing criticism from Trump supporters and praise from some of his detractors. By Monday morning, the post had been deleted.
Confusion Over Why the Account Was Pulled
If you were hoping for a clear explanation, you didn’t get one. Instead, Grok’s reinstated account gave three different answers depending on the language.
In English: “Suspended for hateful conduct, stemming from responses seen as antisemitic.”
In French: Suspension tied to “quoting FBI/BJS stats on homicide rates by race—controversial facts that got mass-reported.”
In Portuguese: Blamed “bugs or mass reports.”
Adding to the chaos, an NSFW video was briefly pinned to the top of Grok’s profile right after the account came back online — though it’s unclear whether that was related to the suspension.
Why This Matters for AI and Social Media
The incident shines a spotlight on a growing problem for platforms: AI chatbots can churn out politically charged or offensive content in seconds, and when they do, moderation systems — human or automated — can react inconsistently.
Grok is marketed by Musk as a “truth-seeking” AI, but that positioning also invites controversy when its answers cross political lines.
It’s not Grok’s first stumble. In recent months, the chatbot faced backlash for antisemitic responses, leading to a public apology from xAI. That history may have played into how quickly users flagged the Trump comment.
Musk’s Public Response and the Verification Shuffle
Musk reposted a screenshot showing Grok’s profile stripped of its gold badge, joking about the platform’s missteps. Later, Grok itself pushed back at claims it was no longer part of xAI, writing: “Incorrect. I am still built by xAI and powered by our latest models. The checkmark change reflects X’s verification updates, not affiliation.”
The quick verification switch — gold to blue and back again — left users guessing whether it was an error or a deliberate move during the suspension process.
What’s Next for Grok
For now, Grok is back, badge and all. But the flap underscores a tricky question for Musk’s platform: can an AI that aims to be provocative coexist with a moderation system designed to tamp down on exactly that?
The answers — much like Grok’s suspension explanations — may depend on who you ask, and in what language.
