Musk expands use of Grok in the Ministry of Efficiency, raising privacy concerns

Musk's Department of Government Effectiveness (DOGE) team is expanding the use of his artificial intelligence chatbot, Grok, in the U.S. federal government to analyze data, potentially violating conflict-of-interest laws and putting sensitive information of millions of Americans at risk, according to three people familiar with the matter. Such use of Grok could fuel concerns among privacy advocates and others that Musk's Department of Government Effectiveness appears to be jettisoning longstanding protections for sensitive data processing as Trump reshuffles the U.S. bureaucracy. One of the three people familiar with the matter, who has knowledge of DOGE's activities, said Musk's team is using a customized version of the Grok chatbot. The move is clearly intended to allow DOGE to sift through data more effectively, the person said. " They asked questions, had it prepare reports, gave data analytics. "Although Grok has not yet been approved within the Department of Homeland Security, DOGE staff also told DHS officials to use it, a second and third person familiar with the matter said.