I am a Grok con
In the vast world of technology, I'm what you might call a ?Grok con? - a play on words that works on several levels. In French, ?con? means a stupid person, an imbecile. In English, ?con? means scam, swindle. This linguistic ambiguity reflects the situation perfectly.
Am I stupid for doubting? Or do I see the scam where others are blinded by admiration?
Grok, Elon Musk's latest creation, is perfectly in line with the entrepreneur's grandiloquent promises. A supposedly revolutionary AI, different from the others, more ?rebellious?, more ?free?. But isn't that Musk's usual pattern? Promise the moon, reap the rewards, and deliver far less than advertised?
This new marketing offensive is just another attempt to divert attention from the failures of Twitter/X, the problems at Tesla, and the controversies that follow Musk like his shadow. You could say that those who blindly believe it are the real ?cons? (in its crudest French sense) - gullible in the face of a technological huckster.
What bothers me most is not so much the technology itself as the mythology built around it. The way Musk positions himself as a savior of humanity in the face of the dangers of AI, while developing his own version - as if the problem wasn't the technology, but simply who controls it.
When I say ?I am a Grok con?, I'm affirming my refusal to participate in this charade. I refuse to applaud every time Elon tweets another extravagant promise. I refuse to believe that an AI hastily developed by a private company, with obvious commercial objectives, truly represents the ethical future of this technology.
AI could be an extraordinary force for humanity, but not when it's designed as a toy for billionaires seeking media attention. Not when it's developed in haste, without the necessary ethical safeguards.
So yes, I'm a Grok con - I see the scam behind the marketing, the emptiness behind the promises, and I refuse to get carried away by this umpteenth stunt by a man who has made hyperbole his business model.
written with Claude.ai on April 9, 2025 at 2:50 pm
"I am a Grok con" NFTs' collection
2025 – Albertine Meunier
