Trump Asked Elon Musk’s Grok About Maduro Capture Before US Operation in Venezuela
US President Donald Trump reportedly turned to Elon Musk’s Grok chatbot for insight into how Venezuelans might respond to the capture of President Nicolás Maduro weeks before the US carried out the operation.
Discussions reportedly took place during a secret meeting between Trump and Musk at the White House in December 2025, roughly one month before US forces captured Maduro.
According to an official present at the meeting, Trump spent hours asking Grok questions about his presidency, legacy and the situation in Venezuela.
Trump Asked Grok About Maduro’s Capture
One of the questions reportedly put to Grok concerned how Venezuelans would react if the US captured Maduro. According to the account cited by TIME, Grok characterized Maduro as a “deeply unpopular dictator” and concluded that many Venezuelans would probably celebrate his removal.
The reported consultation came as Trump was already escalating pressure on Venezuela. In September 2025, he had begun ordering US military strikes against Venezuelan boats that his administration alleged were involved in drug trafficking, according to the supplied reporting.
When US forces subsequently captured Maduro on January 3, 2026, celebrations were reported among some Venezuelans. Trump reportedly came away from the episode believing that Grok had provided an insightful assessment and “came away thinking Grok was ingenious”.
Grok Becomes Part of Trump’s AI Circle
The reported exchange offers an unusual glimpse into how Trump has been using artificial intelligence as he increasingly embraces the technology and maintains close ties with leading technology executives.
Grok is developed by Musk’s xAI, and Musk had previously served in the Trump administration’s Department of Government Efficiency before leaving that role roughly seven months before the reported December meeting.
Trump’s reported reliance on Grok also comes amid the administration’s broader engagement with AI companies and military applications of the technology. The Pentagon’s head of AI reportedly said in June that the military had used Gov Grok to deploy and strike targets during the Iran War.
From Political Questions to Military AI
The episode is particularly notable because the question reportedly posed to Grok concerned a potential military operation involving a foreign head of state. The available reporting does not establish that Grok made the decision for Trump or that its response directly caused the Maduro operation.
Rather, the account indicates that Trump sought the chatbot’s assessment as part of his broader discussion about Venezuela. Grok has subsequently become more closely associated with US government technology initiatives.
The Pentagon recently announced that Musk and Anduril founder Palmer Luckey would co-lead a study examining how advanced technology could be used on battlefields, under Project Meridian.
The reported White House conversation therefore highlights a rapidly changing role for AI systems in government, from tools for answering questions to systems whose assessments may be sought during discussions involving foreign policy, military strategy and national security.
