A secretive team of technologists assembled by Elon Musk is allegedly deploying artificial intelligence to surveil internal communications within at least one U.S. federal agency, according to two individuals familiar with the matter. The surveillance, said to focus on identifying anti-Trump sentiments, marks a startling new intersection of AI, politics, and federal oversight.
The team, known as the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), reportedly launched the effort under the direction of Trump administration officials, who have informed certain government employees of its intent. Sources say the AI-powered monitoring is part of a broader mission to identify what Musk and his allies see as “disloyalty” to Trump’s agenda.
Communications obtained by Reuters indicate DOGE staff are using Signal, an encrypted messaging app with disappearing messages, potentially in violation of federal record-keeping laws. One individual with direct knowledge confirmed that DOGE is making “heavy” use of Grok, Musk’s AI chatbot, though its exact role in surveillance or data analysis remains unclear.
Neither the White House, DOGE, nor Musk responded to requests for comment.
The revelations have raised red flags among cybersecurity and government ethics experts. The combined use of AI and privacy-centric platforms like Signal is fueling concerns over transparency, potential abuses of power, and circumvention of federal oversight. Kathleen Clark, a government ethics scholar at Washington University in St. Louis, warned the practice could be unlawful. “If they’re using Signal and not retaining records, that’s a violation of federal law,” she said.
Nearly 20 individuals familiar with DOGE’s operations, along with court filings reviewed by Reuters, suggest the group is operating with a level of secrecy unprecedented in modern U.S. governance. At the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), sources say managers were instructed to be cautious in all digital communications, particularly with regard to Trump or Musk. Trump-aligned officials reportedly advised EPA leadership that DOGE was deploying AI tools to scan apps like Microsoft Teams for negative messaging.
The EPA, a focal point of the Trump administration’s deregulation push, has seen nearly 600 employees placed on leave since January and is facing a proposed 65% budget cut—moves consistent with Musk’s stated goal of trimming $1 trillion in federal spending.
Sources say DOGE is actively identifying employees deemed out of step with the administration’s priorities. One manager reportedly cautioned, “Be careful what you say, what you type and what you do.”
Critics argue that DOGE’s mission—to root out inefficiency—masks a deeper political motive: reshaping the federal workforce to favor Trump loyalists. Clark called the reported surveillance an “abuse of government power to suppress or deter speech the president doesn’t like.”
Musk, who holds a temporary government advisory role, has previously floated the idea of using AI to replace federal workers entirely, according to a source close to the discussions. The concept involved training AI on massive government datasets to automate essential tasks—an ambition critics argue poses privacy and accountability concerns.
Legal and transparency questions continue to mount. In one instance, DOGE staffers allegedly used Google Docs to simultaneously draft and edit federal documents, bypassing standard protocols and leaving limited paper trails. A judge recently ordered DOGE to begin producing internal records to the watchdog group Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW) after it filed a lawsuit seeking transparency.
Despite the court order, no documents have been released, CREW confirmed.
In recent weeks, DOGE has moved deeper into federal digital infrastructure. At the Office of Personnel Management (OPM), Musk’s team reportedly restricted access to a sensitive employee database, locking out over 100 federal tech staff. Only two individuals now retain access—one career staffer and Greg Hogan, a Musk-aligned political appointee who previously worked in AI.
As DOGE expands its reach under a cloak of secrecy, questions remain about how far Musk’s influence will extend—and whether AI, wielded by a billionaire tech mogul, is reshaping the U.S. government from the inside out.
