By: The Trek News Desk
A major revelation has emerged regarding the use of artificial intelligence in modern warfare, with claims that Grok AI, developed by Elon Musk’s company xAI, has been used in U.S. military operations linked to Iran.
The disclosure appeared in a legal briefing submitted by the United States government and reviewed earlier this week. The filing was presented as part of the Department of Justice’s defence in an environmental lawsuit involving xAI’s data centre infrastructure.
According to the court documents, the U.S. government argued that shutting down gas turbines powering xAI’s data centres could pose a threat to national security. Officials claimed that the computing infrastructure is closely tied to artificial intelligence systems used in defence operations.
The brief suggested that these systems play a role in supporting military AI capabilities operated under the Pentagon’s defence framework, described in the filing as part of broader national security operations.
Testimony from Pentagon AI chief Cameron Stanley indicated that Grok AI is being utilised within the military’s “Project Maven” program. The initiative focuses on AI-assisted target identification and battlefield decision-making support.
Stanley’s statement claimed that AI-powered systems were used in operations that enabled U.S. forces to engage more than 2,000 targets within a 96-hour mission window during a recent campaign.
He further noted that the deployment of the Grok Gov model significantly enhanced operational speed and efficiency in military planning and execution.
The development comes amid a separate legal challenge filed by the NAACP, which has accused xAI of operating multiple gas turbines without proper permits. The organisation claims that emissions from these turbines are affecting predominantly Black communities located near the facilities.
xAI, however, maintains that the turbines are temporary and mobile, arguing that they do not fall under the same regulatory requirements as permanent installations.
The report also highlights broader changes in U.S. defence contracting policy. In February, the government reportedly ended its partnership with AI company Anthropic after it refused to permit its systems to be used for fully autonomous military strikes or large-scale surveillance operations.
Following that decision, U.S. defence agencies reportedly expanded engagement with other technology firms, including Google, OpenAI, and xAI, as part of ongoing efforts to strengthen AI-driven military capabilities.
The developments have intensified global discussions around the ethical and operational risks of artificial intelligence in warfare. At Google, hundreds of employees have previously raised concerns about the company’s involvement in military AI applications, reflecting broader tensions within the tech industry over defence-related deployments.
Source: News Agencies
