Musk has confirmed that his AI chatbot, Grok, is on Telegram. This comes just after Telegram announced that it surpassed 1 billion monthly users. Grok AI is now available for free to all Telegram Premium users.
This marks Grok’s first big expansion beyond X. Users can ask the chatbot questions, get writing help, and even solve coding challenges from the Telegram app.
However, it doesn’t get access to features like “Think” or “DeepSearch”, so users still have to get on X or the official Grok app to use those features.
The chatbot could help Telegram tilt the balance in terms of users upgrading to its premium tier. Users not on the premium plan can’t do anything for now.
Telegram hits 1 billion users and is declaring war on WhatsApp
Pavel Durov said that Telegram has more than 1 billion daily users. This is more than the 950 million monthly active people that were said to be there last year. This is an added achievement to the business, which made $547 million in income last year.
However, outside of China, WhatsApp is the most popular chat app, with more than 2 billion active users every month. Both companies are also trying to attract the attention of businesses and creators with tools like business accounts and channels.
Durov made fun of its Meta-run competitor, WhatsApp, calling it a cheap copy. He said, “Ahead of us stands WhatsApp — a cheap, watered-down imitation of Telegram. For years, they’ve desperately tried to copy our innovations while burning billions on lobbying and PR campaigns to slow us down. They failed. Telegram grew, became profitable, and — unlike our competitor — retained its independence.”
This comes after Durov returned to Dubai, which ended months of legal confinement in France after authorities temporarily lifted his travel restrictions. France was looking into Durov for allegedly being complicit in allowing illegal activities on Telegram, such as not clamping down on organized scams, illegal deals, and CSAM (material about child sexual abuse) propagation.
Grok joins Litecoin on Telegram
Crypto fans like Telegram because it has the TON blockchain, wallets, and a decentralized app ecosystem that lets users open content, tip creators, and buy mini-apps and games inside the app. The company also implemented a decentralized identification system run by a network of third-party accounts in January.
Famous cryptocurrencies like Bitcoin, Toncoin, and USDT can already be traded in Telegram’s Wallet. Users can also trade some in-app game tokens.
More digital currencies will be added in the coming months, but Litecoin was chosen now because it has a long history and is a widely used cryptocurrency.
Adding Litecoin to Telegram’s wallet is part of the company’s plan to become more important in the world of cryptocurrencies. Telegram is working toward a future where messaging and digital currencies go hand in hand by making it easy and smooth to do business inside the app.
Cryptopolitan Academy: Coming Soon - A New Way to Earn Passive Income with DeFi in 2025. Learn More
