What Grok Bot is, and how to set up your first bot
Most AI chat tools answer a question and stop. Grok Bot is built around Bots, which are persistent assistants with a name, a job and a memory that builds up over time. You message a Bot the way you’d text a capable colleague, and it carries out multi-step work for you.
The five ideas that matter
- Each Bot has a job. Rather than one general helper, you create focused assistants, such as a shopping researcher or an inbox organizer.
- Bots have their own computer. Bots work on a persistent cloud computer with a browser, files and a command line. Work keeps going after you close your laptop.
- Connected apps. Connectors, installed as plugins, let Bots work directly with services like email, calendar and cloud storage. For sites with no connector, they can use the browser.
- Skills and routines. A method that worked can be saved as a skill. A routine runs it on a schedule or when something happens. See Skills and routines.
- Approvals. Consequential actions, like sending, buying, deleting or publishing, can be held until you OK them. See the safety checklist.
It works with desktop apps for macOS, Windows and Linux, plus mobile apps for iPhone, iPad and Android. It launched in beta in August 2026 and, as of October 2026, is included with certain paid Grok and Cursor plans. Plans change, so check current pricing before you sign up.
Give your first bot a job in four lines
Describe a Bot’s role in practical terms: what it owns, what it uses, and where it must stop. A vague “General Helper” gets vague results. Use this template:
- Outcome: what the Bot is responsible for finishing.
- Inputs: where it looks (your inbox, a folder, specific websites).
- Output: what “done” looks like (a chat summary, a spreadsheet, a draft).
- Boundaries: what it must never do without asking (send, buy, delete, share).
Role for “Inbox Organizer”: Each morning, review new email in my connected inbox. Label receipts, bills and school notices. Summarize anything that needs a reply today in five bullets. Draft replies for my review, but never send, delete or unsubscribe without asking me first.
Description vs. today’s message
Put rules that should always hold in the Bot’s description (“never send external email without approval”). Put today’s task in the conversation. When you discover a lasting preference, add it to the description.
Start small, then improve
- Give one concrete task with a clear finish line.
- Correct the result in plain language: “Good, but put the totals at the top.”
- Only once it’s reliably right should you save it as a skill or put it on a schedule.
Memory is helpful, not authoritative. Bots remember preferences and summaries, but memory can go stale. For anything that matters, ask the Bot to reopen the current source (the latest statement, today’s calendar) instead of relying on what it remembers.
What it isn’t
- Not infallible. Bots can misread pages or act on outdated information. You stay the editor.
- Not a password manager. Keep passwords in a real password manager. More in the safety checklist.
- Not professional advice. A Bot can organize an insurance claim or tax folder; the decisions stay with you.