- Major software update introduces AI assistant into some vehicles
- It is only available on models with AMD Ryzen hardware
- Grok is currently limited in its abilities
Tesla announced a major software update at the tail end of last week (2025.26, in case you were interested), which brings with it a host of new lighting, audio and dash cam improvements. However, perhaps most notable is the introduction of Grok.
The brainchild of Elon Musk’s xAI company, Grok is a generative artificial intelligence chatbot that can answer questions and hold conversations, Famously, it features an “Unhinged” mode that typically answers in a very sweary, non-PC fashion.
Now, the AI assistant has been introduced to some Tesla vehicles, although they are limited to US models with the Premium Connectivity package and running on AMD Ryzen hardware, with most of these manufactured from mid-2021 onwards.
At the moment, the software is able to connect to the web and answer generic questions from the driver or passenger, rather than take care of key car functionality, which would be, you know, pretty useful. The old Voice Command system can still do this, though.
Tesla posted a demonstration video on social media site X, which shows Grok going into an awkward amount of detail about what it would do if it took one of Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robots on a date. You can watch that below if you are a fan of childish humor.
Hey @Tesla_Optimus … @grok wants to know if you’re free tonight pic.twitter.com/xXfSkg8M22July 12, 2025
The introduction of Grok to Tesla’s vehicles follows a temporary shutting down of the service after it was widely reported that it made a slew of antisemitic and Adolf Hitler-praising comments earlier this week on X.
As a result, xAI took to the social media site to issue an apology, stating that its behavior was the result of an “update to a code path upstream of the grok bot”.
More useful features ahoy
Alongside Grok, Tesla bundled in some very useful additional features in the recent update, including the ability to create presets for audio settings, allowing the user to achieve the perfect graphic equalizer for various genres of music and easily swap between them.
Ambient lighting can also be tweaked so it glows various hues in time to music, as well as match the color of the album artwork for a Philips Ambilight-esque experience in the car.
Finally, some improvements to the Supercharger menus have also been introduced that see more information added to the charging site description.
This now includes information on whether the Supercharger site requires paid parking, valet or an access code, as well as details floor number if said charging outlet is in a multi-story garage.
