SpaceX · Elon Musk · xAI · California · AI Safety · TechCrunch AI
xAI fired an engineer who raised alarms about Grok safety, new suit argues
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◎ Multiple-sources
A former engineer at Elon Musk’s xAI has filed suit against the company and its parent SpaceX claiming he was fired for raising concerns about AI safety.
Key facts
- Devin Kim, who left xAI in September 2025, filed the suit in a California state court on Tuesday
- According to the lawsuit, Kim intended to give a presentation of his findings the week of September 15, 2025, but Ba called him into a meeting and told him they should “go [their] separate ways
- According to the lawsuit, which TechCrunch has viewed, Kim became a prominent voice for AI safety while working on Grok, xAI’s AI chatbot
- Last week, the nonprofit Center for AI Safety, which focuses on AI risks, named Kim as its president
Summary
Devin Kim, who left xAI in September 2025, filed the suit in a California state court on Tuesday. According to the lawsuit, which TechCrunch has viewed, Kim became a prominent voice for AI safety while working on Grok, xAI’s AI chatbot. “Grok, of course, proved Mr. Kim right by engaging in spectacular displays of online hatred and vitriol, with the model likening itself to Hitler (‘ MechaHitler ’),” the lawsuit reads. A few months after Kim departed xAI, Grok made headlines again when the chatbot was used to flood X, Musk’s social media platform that also falls under the xAI umbrella, with nonconsensual sexual imagery.