Grok has done it again–embarrassed its own creator, Elon Musk! This time, it is blaming Musk and Donald Trump for the deaths during the Texas floods.
Grok was built to ensure a reduction in the spread of misinformation. The AI bot was released for people to fact-check information quickly on the platform X. This time, Grok is blaming Elon and the Trump administration for the unfortunate fate of 20 girls who died in Texas floods. A user asked Grok who was responsible for the death of 20 camp mystic girls and seven other people due to heavy floodwaters.
As stated by Grok, NOAA made cuts when the DOGE department under Musk cut down the funding by 30% and staff by 17%. Moreover, there was a delay in alerts, and rain was underestimated by 50%. During his term as the DOGE head, Musk’s job was to reduce federal spending.
One major solution was to fire people from different departments. The staff cuts made during this time by the NWS may have been the cause of unpreparedness of Texas for these floods. Hence, Grok could have connected this and blamed both Musk and Elon for the deaths.
Elon Musk’s AI tool Grok is pointing the finger squarely at its own creator, and the administration he once worked for, for the loss of life during this week’s tragic flooding in Texas.https://t.co/QVhwlNMFgE
— The Daily Beast (@thedailybeast) July 6, 2025
Grok was sarcastic while ending his reply with ‘Facts over Feelings.” According to the official statement for Texas, there has been a failure in forecasting by the National Weather Service. This left the residents unprepared for the floods, killing at least 51 people.
Due to Musk’s attempt to reduce spending, the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration lost 600 staff members. Musk tried to streamline these departments, but it might have backfired in this situation. Grok used this information to imply that the unpreparedness during the floods might be Musk’s work at DOGE.
Grok also posted how facts do not work; they are just facts. Some X users are agreeing with this response, saying your boss was responsible for these cuts while the weather department tried its best to warn. One user called Grok a liar and how it contradicts itself, so it cannot be trusted. Another user said that since it’s an AI bot, do not believe the false information. It has been seen that Grok sometimes responds with blatant truth and without a filter, despite some of the facts being wrong at times.
Elon Musk is big mad that Grok tells the truth.
— Art Candee 🍿🥤 (@ArtCandee) June 21, 2025
Since Musk plans to replace Grok with a better version, the answer from the tool may get better in the future. Many are hoping for it to be more accurate. However, some people like the current unbiased version.
Grok has responded in a similar way when it comes to MAGA. Kaoline Leavitt’s post for the flood tragedy was Grok checked in the replies. A user asked the AI if more such floods could occur if climate change is ignored. It turns out that more floods may occur in Texas as per the IPCC and NOAA predictions due to warmer air trapping more moisture. Grok suggested cutting global emissions as a solution.
Since Grok is just a bot, it cannot be trusted. As proven in a study done by the BBC and Digital Journalism at Columbia University, Grok offers misleading answers and sometimes fabricates fake evidence. However, its logic to connect flood deaths with staff cuts may have some truth, as backed up by other experts.
