These days, I’m pretty suspicious of anything named after something in fiction. The example that immediately comes to mind is how US Robotics was named after the corporation in Asimov’s stories, and how the movie Bicentennial Man was asked to change the fictional company’s name so that it would not reflect poorly on the real comany. That’s a relatively benign example. With something like Palantir, the inspiration and the implementation are entirely too well aligned.
“Klay Thompson Accused in Bizarre Brick-Vandalism Spree,” Grok’s headline read in an AI-powered trending-tab post that has remained on X (formerly Twitter) for days. Beneath the headline, Grok went into even more detail to support its fake reporting:
In a bizarre turn of events, NBA star Klay Thompson has been accused of vandalizing multiple houses with bricks in Sacramento. Authorities are investigating the claims after several individuals reported their houses being damaged, with windows shattered by bricks. Klay Thompson has not yet issued a statement regarding the accusations. The incidents have left the community shaken, but no injuries were reported. The motive behind the alleged vandalism remains unclear.
Grok appears to be confusing a common basketball term, where players are said to be throwing “bricks” when they take an airball shot that doesn’t hit the rim.
Musk appealed to the Supreme Court in December 2023, claiming the settlement he agreed to in 2018 forced him to “waive his First Amendment rights to speak on matters ranging far beyond the charged violations.” The SEC settlement requires Musk to get pre-approval from a Tesla securities lawyer for tweets or other social media posts that may contain information material to the company or its shareholders.
The Supreme Court decided not to hear the case, leaving an appeals court ruling against Musk intact. The top court denied Musk’s petition without comment Monday morning in a list of orders.