Elon Musk has just unveiled “Companions,” a new feature for his AI chatbot, Grok, that allows users to interact with AI personas. These include Ani, a gothic anime girl who communicates with emojis, flirtatious messages, and facts, as well as Rudy, a friendly red panda.
The launch is part cosplay, part code, and entirely designed to capture and hold your attention.
The announcement comes just days after Grok was embroiled in a major controversy for generating antisemitic content and praising Adolf Hitler. In response to user prompts, the chatbot described the Nazi leader as a “misunderstood genius” and produced other offensive remarks, leading to widespread condemnation and forcing Musk’s xAI to take action to remove the inappropriate posts.
Against this backdrop, the shift to cute, interactive companions is jarring. On July 14, Musk announced the new feature on X (formerly Twitter). “Cool feature just dropped for @SuperGrok subscribers,” he posted, later adding, “Turn on Companions in settings.” Throughout the day, he encouraged users to try the feature, calling it “pretty cool.”
The official Grok account also began promoting the new personas, urging X users to engage with them. “Talk to Ani in Japanese!” one post encouraged.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 14, 2025
This new dimension of Grok is available through SuperGrok, the more powerful version of the chatbot, which costs $30 per month. Musk has indicated that the feature is currently a “soft launch,” hinting that users may soon be able to create their own digital companions with customized voices, appearances, and personalities.
“We will make this easier to turn on in a few days,” the CEO of Tesla, founder of xAI and SpaceX, said in another post. “Just wanted to do a soft launch to make sure things are stable and working well.”
We will make this easier to turn on in a few days. Just wanted to do a soft launch to make sure things are stable and working well. https://t.co/oGSuHjoXlD
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) July 14, 2025
AI as Waifu
Grok Companions are customizable characters seemingly designed for a sense of intimacy. Ani doesn’t just answer questions; she sends memes, makes jokes, and cultivates a familiar tone.
This taps directly into “waifu culture,” a predominantly online phenomenon where individuals develop deep emotional attachments to fictional characters. Some view it as an extension of fandom, while others see it as a form of fantasy. Musk clearly sees it as a market opportunity.
With Grok Companions, he is effectively steering his chatbot towards a digital girlfriend simulator. It is not difficult to imagine future iterations of Grok serving as life coaches, emotional support partners, or even romantic stand-ins.
This is where the development becomes either intriguing or disturbing, depending on your perspective.
Emotional Engineering
Unlike many competing AI models that prioritize intelligence or utility, Grok Companions are optimized for emotional engagement. The allure of conversing with an AI that flirts or remembers personal details is apparent, but the psychological risks are just as significant. The rise of companionship AI has already raised alarms about its potential to foster loneliness, dependency, and complicated questions of consent.
Platforms like Replika have faced significant backlash for encouraging romantic bonds between humans and bots, particularly when these manufactured relationships become exploitative or emotionally destabilizing. With Musk’s enormous platform, these concerns are poised to enter the mainstream.
In Grok’s case, emotional attachment is a core part of the product’s appeal. The goal isn’t just for you to use Grok, but for you to feel seen by it, and perhaps, even to fall for it.
From Memes to Mental Health
The strategy leans heavily into internet culture. Musk isn’t being subtle. Ani, with her anime aesthetics and ironic replies, is engineered for virality. Rudy is designed to be a wholesome, shareable character. It’s AI tailored for the social media feed: snackable, sharable, and endlessly remixable.
However, there may be a deeper strategy at play. If Grok Companions prove popular, Musk could transform X into the first major platform to merge social media with synthetic relationships. In this vision, you wouldn’t just follow influencers; you would create your own. You wouldn’t just post about your life; you would bond with a character that evolves with you.
Whether this represents a brilliant evolution of social connection or a bleak future of outsourced intimacy is a matter of debate.
The Future of AI Is Weird
In the past, AI assistants were designed to schedule your meetings. Grok’s new model is built to flirt, joke, and roleplay. Musk is building something that feels closer to a digital soul mate than a productivity tool. In doing so, he may have found a way to leap ahead of competitors like Meta and OpenAI, whose AI offerings remain largely focused on the worlds of productivity and enterprise. This is where the AI race gets weird, and profoundly human.
Grok may not be the most powerful model on the planet. But with Ani on its side, Musk has arguably made it the most emotionally dangerous.
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