TLDR;
- Telegram partners with Elon Musk’s xAI to integrate Grok across its entire ecosystem
- Telegram receives $300 million in a mix of cash and equity from xAI
- Grok will be embedded into core features, not just as a chatbot
- The deal coincides with Telegram’s $1.5B bond raise effort for strategic debt restructuring
Telegram has struck a groundbreaking one-year deal with Elon Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI to embed the Grok chatbot across all its apps, in what experts are calling one of the most ambitious AI integrations in messaging history.
Powerful Messaging-AI Partnership
CEO Pavel Durov announced the partnership Thursday, confirming that starting this summer, Telegram’s over 1 billion monthly active users will gain access to what he claims is “the best AI technology on the market.”
The agreement goes beyond surface-level chatbot integration. In addition to adding Grok as a conversational AI, Telegram will bake Grok’s capabilities into its core interface. Users will soon be able to ask questions from the search bar, get instant summaries of long conversations or documents, generate images and stickers, conduct AI-driven fact-checks, and even assign Grok as a moderator in group chats.
As part of the deal, xAI will pay Telegram $300 million, comprised of both cash and equity. Telegram will also receive 50% of all subscription revenue generated by Grok through its platform.
$1.5 Billion-Dollar Bonds
The announcement comes amid a flurry of financial maneuvers by Telegram. On the same day the Grok integration was made public, reports surfaced that the company is planning to raise $1.5 billion through a new five-year bond issuance. This move is intended to help Telegram repurchase outstanding debt from its 2021 bond round, which is due in March 2026.
Investors backing this new bond issuance include notable names like BlackRock, Abu Dhabi’s Mubadala, and Ken Griffin’s Citadel, according to sources familiar with the matter. The bonds will carry a 9% annual yield, reflecting both Telegram’s high-growth profile and the growing interest institutional players are showing in next-generation communication platforms.
For Durov,the twin developments, a historic AI integration and major bond offeringm, signal a maturation moment for Telegram. The company has long positioned itself as a privacy-focused, fast-growing alternative to WhatsApp, but with Grok’s integration and this new financial injection, Telegram appears poised to become a central player in the next evolution of AI-enhanced communication.
Musk and Durov Go Live
Hints of a partnership had already been circulating in the tech world. Back in March, Durov publicly celebrated Telegram’s milestone of reaching 1 billion monthly active users. Musk congratulated him in a rare public exchange, prompting speculation about potential collaboration.
Grok now on @Telegram https://t.co/a35Eal9vkj
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) March 26, 2025
A few days later, a Grok bot “@GrokAI” appeared in Telegram. Although initially unresponsive, it was later confirmed by Musk himself that Grok was being actively integrated.
Durov’s latest video unveiling shows that this won’t be your average AI bot lurking in a chat window. Instead, Grok is being deeply embedded into Telegram’s user experience, enhancing productivity and creativity tools alike. Whether it’s summarizing heated group debates or helping users generate avatars and stickers, Grok will touch almost every corner of the app.
Monetizing the AI Wave
That said, Telegram’s strategy stands apart from typical Silicon Valley models. Rather than simply licensing tech, Durov has negotiated a revenue-sharing agreement that aligns both firms’ incentives. With AI tools often paywalled behind subscriptions, the ability to monetize directly within the app, and split those revenues, creates a potentially massive revenue stream for Telegram, which has historically relied on investor funding more than profit.
