• by Colin Kirkland , January 10, 2025

Grok, a conversational chatbot integrated into X and powered by xAI's large language model (LLM) called Grok-1, now has its own iOS app, furthering X owner and billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk's desire to transform Grok into a leading force in generative AI while also providing non-X users with the ability to access the technology.

Upon its original launch last year, Grok was only accessible to X's Premium subscribers, which make up fewer than 1% of the platform's total user base. This includes Grok-2 and Grok-2 mini, two newer LLMs that feature an in-app image generator and upgraded performance.

Eventually, the social-media company wanted to bring more users to Grok, testing a “freemium” version of the chatbot, which rolled out early last month, offering users the ability to ask Grok questions, generate images via an enhanced image-generator called Aurora, analyze posts, and generate humorous responses through an “Unhinged Fun” mode.

By allowing non-Premium users the option to send up to 10 messages to Grok every two hours for free, Grok is in direct competition with other free-to-use chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT, Anthropic's Claude, Google Gemini, and Microsoft Copilot.

Now, xAI has made Grok's stand-alone app available to users in the U.S., Australia, and India for free on the Apple App Store.

Once downloaded, users can use the chatbot with or without signing in to their X account, Google account, Apple account, or email.

The company says it is also prepping a dedicated site, Grok.com, to bring the chatbot to the web. xAI raised $6 billion over the summer, and has reported another $6 billion funding round, naming Nvidia and AMD as investors, among others.

Ultimately, by allowing access to Grok on the App Store -- and soon the open web -- xAI is inviting non-X users to access the chatbot, which could prove beneficial considering the divisive nature of the social platform, especially since the election of Donald Trump as the next president of the United States.

X owner Elon Musk's actions, including his endorsement of Trump and his history of offensive and harmful in-app posts, have pushed users away from the platform. However, it is likely that Grok will embody the same “free speech” ethos Musk has infused into X, formerly known as Twitter.

When Musk first introduced Grok to the market, he described the chatbot as edgy and “anti-woke,” as Grok would answer the controversial questions its competing free chatbots were purposefully avoiding.

According to TechCrunch, Grok may soon integrate an “Unhinged Mode,” which xAI says is “intended to be objectionable, inappropriate, and offensive, much like an amateur stand-up comic who is still learning the craft.”