WASHINGTON – From writing messages and finding quick answers to planning our day, AI quietly become part of everyday life. But what happens when the person using it is US president?
US President Donald Trump reportedly turned to Elon Musk’s AI chatbot Grok for insight into Venezuela weeks before US forces captured Nicolás Maduro. During a private meeting with Musk in December 2025, Trump reportedly spent hours questioning Grok about several issues, including Venezuela and the possible consequences of removing Maduro from power.
One of the reported questions was particularly striking: Trump asked how Venezuelans would react if the United States captured Maduro. Grok reportedly responded that Maduro was deeply unpopular and that many Venezuelans could welcome his removal from power.
The conversation took place as tensions between Washington and Caracas were rapidly escalating. The Trump administration had already launched military operations against Venezuelan boats that US officials accused of involvement in drug trafficking. At the same time, growing numbers of people were turning to Grok for information about the situation in Venezuela, including the US strikes and the country’s political climate.
Just weeks after Trump’s reported conversation with the chatbot, US forces captured Maduro on January 3, 2026. Celebrations were subsequently reported among some Venezuelans both inside the country and abroad following Maduro’s removal.
Trump was reportedly impressed by Grok’s earlier assessment after seeing the reaction to Maduro’s capture, with the president viewing the chatbot’s analysis as particularly useful.
The reported conversation has raised fresh questions about the role artificial intelligence may have played in the events surrounding Maduro’s capture. However, there is no public evidence establishing that Grok convinced Trump to authorize the operation or that the military mission was planned on the basis of the chatbot’s response.
The available account indicates that Trump sought Grok’s assessment of the likely Venezuelan reaction and considered its answer useful. The military operation itself had reportedly been prepared over a much longer period.
The episode comes as artificial intelligence assumes a growing role in US defence and national-security operations. In June 2026, the Pentagon’s AI leadership said Grok Gov had been used during the Iran war in connection with military operations and targeting.
Musk’s chatbot is also operating alongside other major AI systems that have become involved in US defence discussions. OpenAI has an agreement with the US Department of Defense, while Anthropic has faced a dispute with the Trump administration over restrictions concerning military and intelligence applications of its AI technology.
Pentagon also moved to bring leading technology executives deeper into discussions about future warfare. Elon Musk and Anduril founder Palmer Luckey were recently tapped to co-lead a study examining how advanced technologies could be developed and used on future battlefields.
Trump’s reported consultation with Grok before the Maduro operation has therefore added another dramatic chapter to the growing debate over how much influence AI should have when governments make decisions involving military force.
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