Grok in Tesla Cars
- Tesla announced all vehicles to be equipped with Grok chatbot starting from 12th July.
- Older vehicles are eligible for the upgrade, provided they fulfil certain criteria.
- Grok is a conversational AI and is limited to giving traditional commands.
- The AI is still in Beta mode and doesn’t need any subscription as of now.
Elon Musk announced that the Grok chatbot, developed by xAI, will start powering the Tesla vehicles in the coming week. He announced it on his X account on Thursday.
The announcement was made just the day after Musk revealed Grok 4, an updated version of the AI model, on a livestream on X on Wednesday.
Already being on a rollout, Grok is a conversational AI assistant and will be integrated in all vehicles starting from 12th July. The intent behind the integration is to give the driver hands-free access to a talking companion while driving.
As per Tesla’s website, all new vehicles being delivered from 12 July onwards will be equipped with Grok, with older models eligible for an over-the-air update, conditioned they pass certain hardware and software requirements.
Based on the information, Grok is only supporting the models that are incorporated with the AMD infotainment process with the software version 2025.26 or higher.
Eligible Tesla car models are,
- Model S
- Model Y
- Model 3
- Cybertruck
Along with this, the vehicles must have a premium connectivity subscription and a stable Wi-Fi connection. More updates regarding the software may come in the future.
Grok in Tesla: What to Expect
Grok can be accessed using the App launcher or with the voice command button that the steering wheel comes equipped with. The AI chatbot is developed to answer the questions asked and take part in a conversation using a natural human tone and in a customized response. The personality of the chatbot can be selected, which ranges from “storyteller” to “Unhinged.”
However, Grok can’t issue commands and is limited to traditional voice commands for simpler tasks like navigation and climate control. The current version is in Beta and doesn’t need a Grok account or a subscription, but the policy may be changed in the coming time.
Navigating the Launch: Controversy and Anticipation
While giving the demo, Musk said, “At times it may lack common sense, and it has not yet invented new technologies or discovered new physics, but that is just a matter of time.”
The launch of the Grok was done amidst the criticism over Grok’s recent actions, in which xAI deleted plenty of posts from the bot’s X account after a few users expressed their anger in anti-Semitic tropes that praised Adolf Hitler. While addressing the chaos, xAI has issued an apology.
However, during the launch, Tesla said that Grok and the interaction with it is completely secured and is processed by xAI. Conversation will stay anonymous unless a user signs in and syncs their history.
The users are waiting in line to receive their Tesla vehicles equipped with Grok and experience the difference.
