Pentagon Claims Trump Administration Used Musk's Grok AI Against Iran

The Trump administration utilized Elon Musk's AI model, Grok, in military operations targeting Iran, according to a Pentagon official's court declaration. This assertion emerged in legal documents filed as part of a lawsuit questioning the legality of data centers operated by Musk's company, xAI.

Cameron Stanley, who oversees AI programs and digital transformation for the Department of Defense, stated that the continuous operation of Grok's supporting infrastructure is a matter of "significant national security importance." The court documents suggest the AI model assisted in a military operation where more than 2,000 munitions were deployed against approximately 2,000 targets within a 96-hour period, as reported by The Independent.

Stanley indicated that Grok is among a limited number of AI models deemed capable of supporting national security applications and operations in highly classified environments. These filings represent one of the most explicit official confirmations of xAI's technologies being used in U.S. military actions. The use of AI in identifying and analyzing targets has become increasingly controversial, particularly when civilian casualties are involved.

While investigations and independent analyses have explored the potential for AI tools to contribute to targeting errors, the systems are designed to provide analytical support to human decision-makers, not to directly generate targets. The specific operation mentioned utilized the Maven Smart System, developed by the U.S. National Geospatial-Intelligence Agency, which employs AI to process vast amounts of data for military and intelligence personnel.

The Pentagon's statements were made within a lawsuit filed by the NAACP, which alleges that xAI operates numerous gas-powered turbines without proper permits or pollution controls, violating federal air quality laws. The plaintiffs claim the company uses at least 57 turbines to power its Colossus 2 data center. The Department of Justice, however, argues that xAI's infrastructure holds significant strategic importance, and restricting its operations could impede the Pentagon's ability to develop and modernize critical systems.

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a matter of significant national security importance