If the bill passes through the Legislature, Gov. Gavin Newsom will decide whether or not to sign it — an uncertain prospect for the governor, who has signed AI regulation in the past, but is reluctant to hamper the growth of the industry.

On Wednesday, Elon Musk discussed a new male AI “companion” that his company xAI is developing, which will run on the company’s unhinged chatbot software Grok. And while it’s not yet clear when this new robot buddy will be released, it sounds an awful lot like Musk is trying to make a romanticized version of himself.

Nearly three-quarters of teens have used AI companions, and half use them regularly, new research finds. Moreover, one-third turn to chatbots for social interactions.

One of the new “companions,” or AI characters for users to interact with, is a sexualized blonde anime bot called “Ani."

Another popular name suggestion for Grok's male AI has been "Chad," a slang term for a man that other men consider attractive and appealing to women. Though the AI character was o

Ani, an anime avatar wearing a tight black dress, was launched the same day the tech billionaire was awarded a $200 million Department of Defense contract.

Exclusive: AI-companion chatbots are dangerously promoting harmful personas including sexualised underage characters that encourage pedophilia and other sickening behaviours.

The latest version of Grok for iOS (version 1.1.18) comes with two companions — an anime girl called Ani and a red panda called Rudi.

The companions have their own X accounts, because of course they do. Ani's bio states, "Smooth, a little unpredictable—I might dance, tease, or just watch you figure me out. Let’s keep it chill… or not." Meanwhile, Rudy's just says, "The Only Pet in Grok Companion."

xAI’s Grok can’t seem to stay out of the news recently. It’s had its highs, releasing Grok 4, one of the most powerful AI systems of all time. And some lows, spouting bizarre conspiracy theories to the masses. Now, it’s back in the news, and it's for one of the weirder reasons possible.

AI has offered a couple more fixes for “issues” with its Grok AI chatbot, promising it will no longer name itself “Hitler” or base its responses on searches for what xAI head Elon Musk has said. According to an X post earlier today,