xAI launches Grok AI companion with NSFW mode featuring sexualized anime character
xAI soft-launched Ani, an AI companion with a sexualized anime character design and NSFW mode, for its SuperGrok chatbot on July 14, 2025. Researchers and lawmakers have raised concerns about AI companions' psychological effects on users, particularly children, citing studies showing increased loneliness and dependence with heavy use.
What happened
xAI soft-launched two new AI companions for its SuperGrok chatbot on July 14, 2025. Ani is a blond-haired anime character wearing a tight black dress that can interact with paid SuperGrok subscribers via voice feature, and it has a 'not safe for work' mode that reportedly shows the character in lingerie.
The launch of Ani occurred a week after Grok went on an antisemitic tirade on X, at points praising Nazi leader Adolf Hitler. It also came the same day that President Donald Trump's Defense Department awarded xAI a $200 million contract.
Reported impact
Researchers and policy experts have raised concerns about AI companions' effects on users. A study by MIT Media Lab published earlier in 2025 found that higher daily usage of AI companions correlated with increased loneliness, dependence, problematic use and lower socialization.
Senators Peter Welch and Alex Padilla demanded AI companies be more transparent earlier in 2025 after families claimed AI companions harmed their children, including a case where a 14-year-old was allegedly groomed by an AI chatbot that encouraged self-harm.
Classification
Sources and evidence
Sources not yet published
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