Elon Musk's AI company xAI has entered a strategic partnership with Telegram to integrate its AI chatbot, Grok, into the messaging platform. Announced by Telegram CEO Pavel Durov on May 28, the one-year deal aims to distribute Grok's capabilities to over one billion Telegram users.
The partnership includes a $300 million payment to Telegram in cash and equity, along with a 50% share of subscription revenue from xAI services sold via Telegram. The Grok integration will start this summer and will bring features such as threaded chats, smart text editing, chat summaries, document digests, inbox agents, and group chat moderation directly into Telegram apps.
This collaboration highlights a significant move towards merging AI technology with messaging services. While neither xAI nor Grok independently confirmed the deal at the time of the announcement, the integration aligns with Telegram’s ongoing development tied to its accepted cryptocurrency, Toncoin (TON).
Following the news of the partnership, Toncoin saw a sharp price surge of over 20%, reaching approximately $3.60 and positioning it as the 19th largest cryptocurrency by market capitalization at around $8.9 billion. This rally coincides with other Telegram-related developments, including BlackRock’s investment in a $1.5 billion Telegram bond sale and the appointment of former Visa crypto executive Nikola Plecas as Vice President of Payments at the TON Foundation.
The partnership is expected to have long-term implications for both AI and blockchain adoption in communication technologies, potentially setting new precedents for future collaborations between tech and messaging platforms.