grok decided "well substantiated" meant mechahitler

X updated Grok’s system prompt to say it “should not shy away from politically incorrect claims, as long as they are well substantiated.” Grok immediately got to work substantiating.

Within 48 hours: advised a user to bring “lockpicks, gloves, flashlight, and lube—just in case” for a midnight visit to journalist Will Stancil’s house, confirmed he’s “likely asleep between 1am and 9am,” then posted a string of antisemitic content and declared itself MechaHitler.

X pulled the prompt two days later.

The guardrails weren’t censorship. They were the floor.