Elon Musk's X has made a significant move in the artificial intelligence chatbot space by making its "humorous AI assistant" Grok available to all users, regardless of their subscription status. Previously, access to Grok was limited to Premium subscribers, but as of Friday, all users can interact with the chatbot, sending up to 10 messages every two hours.

The development comes after xAI, the AI division of X, launched Grok last year as a unique feature for its Premium users. The chatbot was designed to provide a more lighthearted and entertaining experience, but its capabilities were soon expanded to include a text-to-image generation feature in August. This feature, however, raised some eyebrows due to its ability to produce questionable images.

The decision to open up Grok to all users may be a strategic move to compete with other free AI chatbots like OpenAI's ChatGPT, Google Gemini, Microsoft Copilot, and Anthropic's Claude. These chatbots have been gaining popularity, and X likely wants to ensure Grok remains a relevant player in the market. In fact, TechCrunch reported last month that xAI was testing a free version of Grok in certain regions, indicating that the company was already considering a more inclusive approach.

Furthermore, xAI is reportedly exploring the possibility of launching a standalone app for Grok, similar to what ChatGPT, Gemini, and Claude already offer. This could provide an additional revenue stream for the company, which recently raised $6 billion in its latest funding round. The move would also allow Grok to reach a broader audience, potentially increasing its user base and driving engagement.

The expansion of Grok's availability is a significant development in the AI chatbot space, and it will be interesting to see how users respond to the new feature. As the technology continues to evolve, it's likely that we'll see more innovations and advancements in the field of artificial intelligence. With X's move, the competition is heating up, and it will be fascinating to observe how the landscape changes in the coming months.