The US government has disclosed that Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence platform, Grok, played a role in military operations targeting Iran, according to a court filing submitted on June 15.
The disclosure emerged as part of a legal defense supporting the use of gas turbines powering a major xAI data center. The facility is currently the subject of an environmental lawsuit filed by the NAACP, which alleges that the company is operating dozens of turbines without the required permits and violating the Clean Air Act.
In its filing, the US Department of Justice argued that shutting down the power supply to the data center could undermine national interests. Federal lawyers stated that the lawsuit threatens American national, economic, and energy security by potentially disrupting AI systems that support military operations.
To reinforce its position, the government cited testimony from Cameron Stanley, the Pentagon’s chief AI official. Stanley confirmed under oath that Grok has been integrated into Project Maven, the US military’s AI-assisted targeting program. Project Maven was previously powered by Anthropic’s Claude AI model.
According to Stanley’s testimony, Maven Smart Systems enabled US forces to identify and strike approximately 2,000 targets using more than 2,000 munitions within a 96-hour period during Operation Epic Fury. He credited the “Grok Gov Model” with significantly improving operational efficiency.
The legal battle comes amid broader concerns over the growing use of artificial intelligence in warfare. Earlier this year, the US government ended contracts with Anthropic after the company declined to allow its technology to be used for fully automated military strikes or large-scale domestic surveillance.
Following that decision, the Pentagon expanded cooperation with other AI firms, including Google, OpenAI, and xAI.
The military’s increasing reliance on AI has also generated internal opposition within the technology sector. More than 600 Google employees previously called on the company to avoid providing AI technologies for classified military operations, while critics continue to warn about the risks associated with advanced AI systems in combat.
Despite the shift toward newer platforms, the US government acknowledged in March that Anthropic’s Claude AI was still being used in relation to military operations involving Iran.
Meanwhile, Musk strengthened the ties between his technology ventures by merging xAI with SpaceX in February. The move came months before SpaceX completed what was described as the largest initial public offering in history on June 12.
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