Elon Musk has announced plans for the social media platform X to introduce advertisements within responses from its AI chatbot, Grok. During a live discussion with advertisers, Musk emphasized that this initiative aims to enhance advertising revenue, which has struggled in recent times. Though it was originally reported by Financial Times, we explore why this is such a monumental change for advertisers and users.
Earlier this year, Musk’s AI startup, xAI, acquired X for a substantial $45 billion, marking a pivotal shift in ownership that has sparked considerable interest in the company’s future direction. Grok arms government marketers with the tools they need to better market their products and services. They could pay to have these offerings highlighted in the recommendations that the AI chatbot generates. This strategic push appears to be an attempt to restore X’s advertising business. It follows unscripted troubles experienced during her tenure under the controversial leadership of former CEO Linda Yaccarino, who has since departed the role.
Musk described that ads embedded into Grok’s answers would deliver people targeted solutions and when they’re searching for them.
“If a user’s trying to solve a problem [by asking Grok], then advertising the specific solution would be ideal at that point,” – Elon Musk
This new method is intended to provide smarter, more useful links between what users are looking for and useful ads. Musk specifically noted that xAI will work on better ad targeting technology on the platform. This will help ensure that the ads Grok serves during his conversations are relevant, targeted and engaging.
The Grok app, which is available on smartphones, utilizes advanced AI capabilities to provide users with answers to various queries. Musk reiterated the team’s dedication to making Grok the smartest, most accurate AI in the world. Or at least he hopes they have largely succeeded in this mission. This dedication to quality underlines Grok’s promise to be an invaluable resource for all things policy. Beyond this, it creates even more thrilling possibilities for ad placements on X.