Elon Musk’s favorite digital provocateur is officially moving into European garages. With the rollout of software version 2026.2.6, Tesla is finally bringing Grok, the AI chatbot developed by xAI, to vehicles across Germany, Austria, Switzerland, Italy, France, and several other lucky nations.
It’s a significant step up from the “legacy” onboard voice recognition that previously only understood basic commands if you asked very nicely. Now, your car can finally engage in the kind of real-time, snarky banter previously reserved for the dark corners of X.
The Grok beta allows users to ask complex questions using real-time information, which is great if you need to know the current stock price of a failing social media platform while stuck in traffic. It even helps with navigation, allowing you to add or modify commands on the fly.
While Grok can explain the intricacies of the Roman Empire or tell you a bedtime story, it currently lacks the “god-like” power to turn on your seat heaters, adjust your media, or activate your windshield wipers. For those mundane tasks, you’ll have to rely on the old-school voice commands or use your hands.
To invite this digital hitchhiker into your cabin, your Tesla needs to be part of the “cool kids” club. It must be equipped with an AMD Ryzen processor, a standard for vehicles built since mid-2021. You’ll also need to cough up roughly €10 a month for a Premium Connectivity subscription. You can tether the car to your smartphone’s Wi-Fi, which is a fantastic way to drain your battery while arguing with an AI.
Perhaps the most “Elon” feature of all is the ability to customize the chatbot’s personality. Users can choose between various modes, ranging from a standard “Storyteller” to the infamous “Unhinged” mode. Tesla is quick to point out that your conversations are anonymous and not linked to your specific vehicle, so feel free to tell the “Unhinged” version of your car your deepest secrets.
Once the update is installed, you can find Grok as a standalone app in the launcher or simply hold down the voice button on your steering wheel to start the chaos.
