Donald Trump Quizzed Grok for Hours on Venezuela Before Nicolas Maduro Capture: Report
Donald Trump reportedly spent hours questioning Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok about how Venezuelans would react if the US captured Nicolas Maduro, according to a Time magazine report on his growing fixation with AI.
US President Donald Trump reportedly grilled Elon Musk's AI chatbot Grok for hours about how Venezuelans would respond to the capture of Nicolas Maduro, a month before he ordered the operation that actually seized the Venezuelan leader, according to a Time magazine report citing a Trump insider. The account offers a striking look at how fixated the president has become on artificial intelligence, a field he officially rebranded this week as super intelligence, and how much weight he appears to place on what chatbots tell him.
Per the report, Trump has been fascinated with AI's capabilities since returning to office. That interest was on full display during a December meeting in the Oval Office with Musk, where Trump reportedly fired question after question at Grok about his presidency and the legacy he would leave behind.
What Did Grok Tell Trump About Maduro?
At the time, the US military was already carrying out lethal strikes on Venezuelan boats that Trump claimed, without offering any proof, were smuggling drugs into the country. In the middle of that campaign, Trump asked Grok a specific question: how would Venezuelans react if the US captured Maduro? Donald Trump Announces US Deal to Control 65 Billion Barrels of Venezuela Oil.
According to the official who witnessed the exchange, Grok described Maduro as a repressive and widely disliked dictator and said many Venezuelans would likely celebrate his downfall.
Trump Left 'Impressed' After Maduro Operation
A month later, Trump ordered the mission that seized Maduro. Officials say the president came away genuinely impressed, believing Grok had essentially nailed its prediction. Donald Trump Posts Picture of Himself As ‘Acting President of Venezuela’.
It is worth noting that AI chatbots do not think or reason the way people do. Their responses are shaped by the data they were trained on, not by independent judgment or insight.
Venezuela Reality Far Messier Than Prediction
Things on the ground have turned out far messier than the chatbot's forecast suggested. Maduro remains in US custody and is fighting drug trafficking charges in a federal court. Ordinary Venezuelans, meanwhile, still have not been given the chance to vote in free and fair elections, even as the US maintains its grip on the oil-rich nation.
Venezuela Confidence Carried Into Iran War
The apparent success in Venezuela seems to have boosted Trump's confidence going into his conflict with Iran, which is now in its seventh month. He had reportedly expected it to wrap up just as quickly.
Trump's AI Obsession Keeps Growing
Despite the messy aftermath, Trump's enthusiasm for AI has only intensified. He has become deeply invested in AI-generated imagery and regularly posts fantastical pictures of himself on Truth Social, portraying himself in everything from religious iconography to superhero costumes.
White House Tech Lunch And The Regulation Debate
Trump has also resisted calls for tighter government oversight of AI, even as concerns grow about the technology spiralling out of control. This week, he hosted a lunch at the White House with major tech figures, including Musk, Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang, Amazon's Jeff Bezos and Meta's Mark Zuckerberg. The agreement that emerged from the meeting leans heavily on the companies policing themselves rather than setting up any binding federal regulations.
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Oct 02, 2026 07:45 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).
