Elon Musk’s AI tool Grok was utilized in attacks against Iran, according to a legal briefing from the U.S. government seen Tuesday by AFP.
The June 15 document defends the gas turbines operated by a massive data center owned by Musk’s company xAI, which is currently facing an environmental lawsuit.
In the filing, the Justice Department contended that the lawsuit “endangers American national, economic, and energy security by attempting to shut down the power supply that fuels artificial intelligence innovations supporting military operations.”
To bolster this point, prosecutors cited testimony from Pentagon AI lead Cameron Stanley, who stated under oath that Grok is already deployed within Project Maven, the U.S. military’s AI-assisted targeting system initially powered by Anthropic’s Claude.
Stanley’s testimony detailed that Maven’s Smart Systems enabled U.S. forces to deploy over 2,000 munitions targeting 2,000 separate sites within 96 hours during Operation Epic Fury. He also praised Musk’s technology and emphasized the efficiency improvements gained through the Grok Government Model.
The NAACP, a civil rights organization advocating for Black Americans, filed a lawsuit against xAI, claiming the company operates dozens of turbines without permits, violating the Clean Air Act. The group argues these turbines pollute predominantly Black neighborhoods, but xAI claims they are temporary and mobile, making them unregulated.
In late February, the government ended its contracts with Anthropic after the company refused to permit its AI tools to be used for fully automated strikes or mass surveillance of Americans. Subsequently, the Pentagon turned to competitors like Google, OpenAI, and xAI to sustain its AI efforts.
At Google, over 600 employees demanded the company refuse to provide AI services for classified military operations, citing broader concerns about AI’s threats. The U.S. military’s integration of AI remains slow, and in March, officials confirmed that Claude continued to be used in the Iran conflict.
Additionally, Musk, a close associate of former President Donald Trump, integrated xAI into SpaceX in February. SpaceX conducted the largest IPO in history on June 12.