Wikipedia is on the defensive after Elon Musk accused the go-to online reference site of political bias and launched a competing version, called Grokipedia.
The Tesla owner's new site, named after Grok, his artificial intelligence bot that responds to queries on X, claims more than 885,000 articles. It is a fraction of Wikipedia's total of about seven million, but a large number for a website that was launched on October 27.
In late September, US President Donald Trump's AI and crypto adviser David Sacks accused Wikipedia of political bias. A day later, Mr Musk announced he was building Grokipedia. He promised it would “be a massive improvement over Wikipedia”, which he has referred to as “wokepedia”.
In highlighting what he described as left-wing biases on Wikipedia, Mr Musk shared a social media post comparing how Grokipedia and Wikipedia described murdered right-wing political activist Charlie Kirk. Mr Musk took issue with the fact that the Wikipedia entry described Mr Kirk as a “far-right” activist and conspiracy theorist.
Since its founding in 2001, Wikipedia has grown into one of the internet's most recognisable brands. It is known for being able to be edited by just about anyone and has “thousands of volunteers around the world”.
“Volunteers will discuss, debate and often disagree until a shared consensus can be reached on what content to include on Wikipedia,” a post on Wikipedia's non-profit Wikimedia Foundation page reads.
Wikipedia co-founder Larry Sanger has warned that Grokipedia could threaten Wikipedia’s relevance unless the company that he left in 2002 undergoes reform. Mr Sanger left Wikipedia shortly after its launch. Critics of his recent comments point out that he made them on a highly partisan podcast hosted by right-wing commentator Tucker Carlson.
In a recent interview with The Guardian, Wikipedia's other co-founder, Jimmy Wales, called Mr Musk's bias claims false and defended Wikipedia's overall style and process.
“What we’re looking for is kind and thoughtful people who care more about getting it right and being calm and factual,” he said.
Despite the launch of Grokipedia, Wikipedia's success in making information freely available is largely unrivalled.
“Since 2001, Wikipedia has been the backbone of knowledge on the internet,” a Wikimedia Foundation representative told The National. “Wikipedia's strengths are clear. It has transparent policies, rigorous volunteer oversight and a strong culture of continuous improvement.”
Although Mr Musk supporters have embraced Grokipedia, critics say there are reasons to be sceptical. The Grok AI that apparently helps power the site has drawn controversy. In July, it answered user prompts with comments deemed so offensive that a court in Turkey temporarily blocked access.
It also provided anti-Semitic answers to some prompts and praised Adolf Hitler. Mr Musk blamed a technical glitch for the problems, but the entrepreneur's far-right political leanings led many to be question his explanations.
After Mr Trump won the presidential election last year, the xAI and Tesla chief gave an apparent Nazi salute to supporters during an inauguration day event. Following his purchase of Twitter in late 2022, he also fired many of the workers responsible for moderating content and flagging hate-speech.
A recent study conducted by researchers at the Berkeley, Los Angeles and Southern California branches of the University of California found that hate speech and spam bots using hate speech have increased since Mr Musk bought Twitter.
Unlike Wikipedia, which routinely documents who edits articles and provides edit history, Grokipedia provides no such insights.
It is also not clear how Grokipedia's articles came into existence, though many speculate xAI's Grok chatbot is used in part. It is also possible that Grokipedia uses content from Wikipedia.
“We're still in the process of understanding how Grokipedia works,” a Wikimedia representative said. “This human-created knowledge is what AI companies rely on to generate content – even Grokipedia needs Wikipedia to exist.”
Wikipedia's influence and search engine-optimised success has yet to be dented by various challengers, including by some of the biggest names in Silicon Valley.
“Even Google, which noticed how often Wikipedia showed up in its search results, tried at one point to launch a competitor,” wrote Mathew Ingram, a blogger, reporter and former digital writer for the Columbia Journalism Review.
“It was supposed to aggregate crowdsourced knowledge from experts and regular Google users, but it was barely even alive in the world before it suddenly vanished without a trace,” he added, referring to Knol, Alphabet-owned Google's attempt to challenge Wikipedia.
Mr Ingram described Wikipedia as one of the best creations to emerge from the internet, adding that he believes it is “a shining example of everything the internet was supposed to do”.
It remains to be seen if Grokipedia will go on to engender similar feelings – but Mr Musk is not showing sign of backing down from his latest endeavour.
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Who has lived at The Bishops Avenue?
- George Sainsbury of the supermarket dynasty, sugar magnate William Park Lyle and actress Dame Gracie Fields were residents in the 1930s when the street was only known as ‘Millionaires’ Row’.
- Then came the international super rich, including the last king of Greece, Constantine II, the Sultan of Brunei and Indian steel magnate Lakshmi Mittal who was at one point ranked the third richest person in the world.
- Turkish tycoon Halis Torprak sold his mansion for £50m in 2008 after spending just two days there. The House of Saud sold 10 properties on the road in 2013 for almost £80m.
- Other residents have included Iraqi businessman Nemir Kirdar, singer Ariana Grande, holiday camp impresario Sir Billy Butlin, businessman Asil Nadir, Paul McCartney’s former wife Heather Mills.
Hunting park to luxury living
- Land was originally the Bishop of London's hunting park, hence the name
- The road was laid out in the mid 19th Century, meandering through woodland and farmland
- Its earliest houses at the turn of the 20th Century were substantial detached properties with extensive grounds
The biog
Favourite food: Tabbouleh, greek salad and sushi
Favourite TV show: That 70s Show
Favourite animal: Ferrets, they are smart, sensitive, playful and loving
Favourite holiday destination: Seychelles, my resolution for 2020 is to visit as many spiritual retreats and animal shelters across the world as I can
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Favourite dog breed: I love them all - if I had to pick Yorkshire terrier for small dogs and St Bernard's for big
23-man shortlist for next six Hall of Fame inductees
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Profile of Whizkey
Date founded: 04 November 2017
Founders: Abdulaziz AlBlooshi and Harsh Hirani
Based: Dubai, UAE
Number of employees: 10
Sector: AI, software
Cashflow: Dh2.5 Million
Funding stage: Series A
Specs
Engine: Duel electric motors
Power: 659hp
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On sale: Available for pre-order now
Price: On request
'The worst thing you can eat'
Trans fat is typically found in fried and baked goods, but you may be consuming more than you think.
Powdered coffee creamer, microwave popcorn and virtually anything processed with a crust is likely to contain it, as this guide from Mayo Clinic outlines:
Baked goods - Most cakes, cookies, pie crusts and crackers contain shortening, which is usually made from partially hydrogenated vegetable oil. Ready-made frosting is another source of trans fat.
Snacks - Potato, corn and tortilla chips often contain trans fat. And while popcorn can be a healthy snack, many types of packaged or microwave popcorn use trans fat to help cook or flavour the popcorn.
Fried food - Foods that require deep frying — french fries, doughnuts and fried chicken — can contain trans fat from the oil used in the cooking process.
Refrigerator dough - Products such as canned biscuits and cinnamon rolls often contain trans fat, as do frozen pizza crusts.
Creamer and margarine - Nondairy coffee creamer and stick margarines also may contain partially hydrogenated vegetable oils.
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The specs
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Greatest Royal Rumble results
John Cena pinned Triple H in a singles match
Cedric Alexander retained the WWE Cruiserweight title against Kalisto
Matt Hardy and Bray Wyatt win the Raw Tag Team titles against Cesaro and Sheamus
Jeff Hardy retained the United States title against Jinder Mahal
Bludgeon Brothers retain the SmackDown Tag Team titles against the Usos
Seth Rollins retains the Intercontinental title against The Miz, Finn Balor and Samoa Joe
AJ Styles remains WWE World Heavyweight champion after he and Shinsuke Nakamura are both counted out
The Undertaker beats Rusev in a casket match
Brock Lesnar retains the WWE Universal title against Roman Reigns in a steel cage match
Braun Strowman won the 50-man Royal Rumble by eliminating Big Cass last
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UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The National Archives, Abu Dhabi
Founded over 50 years ago, the National Archives collects valuable historical material relating to the UAE, and is the oldest and richest archive relating to the Arabian Gulf.
Much of the material can be viewed on line at the Arabian Gulf Digital Archive - https://www.agda.ae/en
'Downton Abbey: A New Era'
Director: Simon Curtis
Cast: Hugh Bonneville, Elizabeth McGovern, Maggie Smith, Michelle Dockery, Laura Carmichael, Jim Carter and Phyllis Logan
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How to tell if your child is being bullied at school
Sudden change in behaviour or displays higher levels of stress or anxiety
Shows signs of depression or isolation
Ability to sleep well diminishes
Academic performance begins to deteriorate
Changes in eating habits
Struggles to concentrate
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Begins to use language they do not normally use
SPECS
Nissan 370z Nismo
Engine: 3.7-litre V6
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Power: 363hp
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Our legal columnist
Name: Yousef Al Bahar
Advocate at Al Bahar & Associate Advocates and Legal Consultants, established in 1994
Education: Mr Al Bahar was born in 1979 and graduated in 2008 from the Judicial Institute. He took after his father, who was one of the first Emirati lawyers
Your rights as an employee
The government has taken an increasingly tough line against companies that fail to pay employees on time. Three years ago, the Cabinet passed a decree allowing the government to halt the granting of work permits to companies with wage backlogs.
The new measures passed by the Cabinet in 2016 were an update to the Wage Protection System, which is in place to track whether a company pays its employees on time or not.
If wages are 10 days late, the new measures kick in and the company is alerted it is in breach of labour rules. If wages remain unpaid for a total of 16 days, the authorities can cancel work permits, effectively shutting off operations. Fines of up to Dh5,000 per unpaid employee follow after 60 days.
Despite those measures, late payments remain an issue, particularly in the construction sector. Smaller contractors, such as electrical, plumbing and fit-out businesses, often blame the bigger companies that hire them for wages being late.
The authorities have urged employees to report their companies at the labour ministry or Tawafuq service centres — there are 15 in Abu Dhabi.
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
RESULTS
Catchweight 82kg
Piotr Kuberski (POL) beat Ahmed Saeb (IRQ) by decision.
Women’s bantamweight
Corinne Laframboise (CAN) beat Cornelia Holm (SWE) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Omar Hussein (PAL) beat Vitalii Stoian (UKR) by unanimous decision.
Welterweight
Josh Togo (LEB) beat Ali Dyusenov (UZB) by unanimous decision.
Flyweight
Isaac Pimentel (BRA) beat Delfin Nawen (PHI) TKO round-3.
Catchweight 80kg
Seb Eubank (GBR) beat Emad Hanbali (SYR) KO round 1.
Lightweight
Mohammad Yahya (UAE) beat Ramadan Noaman (EGY) TKO round 2.
Lightweight
Alan Omer (GER) beat Reydon Romero (PHI) submission 1.
Welterweight
Juho Valamaa (FIN) beat Ahmed Labban (LEB) by unanimous decision.
Featherweight
Elias Boudegzdame (ALG) beat Austin Arnett (USA) by unanimous decision.
Super heavyweight
Maciej Sosnowski (POL) beat Ibrahim El Sawi (EGY) by submission round 1.
How to apply for a drone permit
- Individuals must register on UAE Drone app or website using their UAE Pass
- Add all their personal details, including name, nationality, passport number, Emiratis ID, email and phone number
- Upload the training certificate from a centre accredited by the GCAA
- Submit their request
What are the regulations?
- Fly it within visual line of sight
- Never over populated areas
- Ensure maximum flying height of 400 feet (122 metres) above ground level is not crossed
- Users must avoid flying over restricted areas listed on the UAE Drone app
- Only fly the drone during the day, and never at night
- Should have a live feed of the drone flight
- Drones must weigh 5 kg or less
SERIE A FIXTURES
Friday Sassuolo v Torino (Kick-off 10.45pm UAE)
Saturday Atalanta v Sampdoria (5pm),
Genoa v Inter Milan (8pm),
Lazio v Bologna (10.45pm)
Sunday Cagliari v Crotone (3.30pm)
Benevento v Napoli (6pm)
Parma v Spezia (6pm)
Fiorentina v Udinese (9pm)
Juventus v Hellas Verona (11.45pm)
Monday AC Milan v AS Roma (11.45pm)
