The United States government has disclosed that Grok, the artificial intelligence model developed by Elon Musk’s xAI, was used to support military operations targeting Iran, according to a legal filing made public on Tuesday.
The revelation emerged in a June 15 court brief filed by the U.S. Department of Justice as part of a legal defence of gas turbines powering a major xAI data centre that is currently the subject of an environmental lawsuit.
In the filing, federal prosecutors argued that efforts to shut down the facility could undermine critical national interests, citing the role of artificial intelligence in supporting U.S. military operations.
The Department of Justice stated that the lawsuit “threatens American national, economic, and energy security by seeking to shut off the power supply for artificial intelligence innovation that supports the Department of War’s military operations.”
As part of its argument, the government submitted testimony from Cameron Stanley, the Pentagon’s chief artificial intelligence officer, who stated under oath that Grok is currently being used within Project Maven, the U.S. military’s AI-assisted targeting programme.
Project Maven, which was originally powered by Anthropic’s Claude model, uses artificial intelligence to analyse intelligence and support military decision-making processes.
According to Stanley’s testimony, the programme’s Maven Smart Systems platform enabled U.S. forces to deploy more than 2,000 munitions against approximately 2,000 separate targets within a 96-hour period during Operation Epic Fury.
Stanley credited Grok’s integration into the programme with significantly improving operational efficiency.
He specifically praised what he described as “the greatly increased operational efficiency made possible by the Grok Gov Model.”
The disclosure came amid a lawsuit filed by the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP), which accuses xAI of operating dozens of gas-powered turbines without the necessary environmental permits.
The civil rights organisation argues that emissions from the turbines disproportionately affect predominantly Black communities and violate provisions of the U.S. Clean Air Act.
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xAI has denied the allegations, maintaining that the turbines are temporary and mobile units that are not subject to the regulatory requirements cited in the lawsuit.
The filing also shed light on broader changes within the Pentagon’s artificial intelligence strategy.
According to the document, the U.S. government ended its contracts with Anthropic in February after the company declined to permit the use of its AI tools for fully automated military strikes or mass domestic surveillance.
Following the termination of those agreements, the Pentagon reportedly expanded its engagement with other AI developers, including Google, OpenAI and xAI.
The military’s growing reliance on artificial intelligence has generated debate within the technology sector.
Hundreds of Google employees have previously opposed the company’s involvement in classified military projects, while experts and advocacy groups have raised concerns about the ethical implications of deploying AI in warfare.
Despite the Pentagon’s transition toward newer AI systems, government officials reportedly acknowledged in March that Anthropic’s Claude model was still being utilised in operations connected to the conflict involving Iran.
The disclosure comes as Musk continues to expand his influence across the technology and defence sectors.
The billionaire entrepreneur integrated xAI into SpaceX earlier this year, further strengthening ties between his artificial intelligence and aerospace ventures.
The latest revelations are likely to intensify discussions about the role of artificial intelligence in modern warfare, government oversight of emerging technologies and the balance between national security priorities and ethical concerns surrounding military AI applications.