Musk’s DOGE Accused Of Using AI To Spy On US Federal Workers: What We Know So Far
Sources reportedly revealed that DOGE team members are also editing official documents in real time using shared Google Docs, avoiding traditional oversight and documentation trails.
Elon Musk’s controversial tech unit within the US government, dubbed the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), is facing fresh scrutiny over its alleged use of artificial intelligence to monitor federal employees. According to sources cited by Reuters, DOGE is deploying AI tools to scan communications for signs of opposition to President Donald Trump and his policy agenda.
This alleged surveillance, said to be targeting at least one federal agency, marks a bold — and for many, troubling — new direction in government oversight. “Be careful what you say, what you type and what you do,” one manager reportedly warned, echoing concerns that the line between security and suppression is becoming increasingly blurred.
DOGE’s practices are raising alarm bells not just for what they are doing, but how. Communications are being conducted via Signal — a privacy-centric messaging app with disappearing messages — sparking fears that federal record-keeping laws are being sidestepped. “If they’re using Signal and not backing up every message to federal files, then they are acting unlawfully,” said Kathleen Clark, a government ethics expert at Washington University in St. Louis.
Questions Mount Over Transparency, Record-Keeping
The accusations go beyond just snooping. Sources revealed that DOGE team members are also editing official documents in real time using shared Google Docs, avoiding traditional oversight and documentation trails. This has allowed them to bypass vetting processes and speed up operational changes — often without informing other agency staff.
Adding to the secrecy, the Trump administration insists DOGE, as part of the Executive Office of the President, isn’t bound by transparency laws like the Freedom of Information Act (FOIA). However, a federal judge disagreed, ordering DOGE to begin releasing records following a lawsuit from ethics watchdog Citizens for Responsibility and Ethics in Washington (CREW). As of this week, no documents have been handed over.
Clark warned that such secrecy “sounds like an abuse of government power to suppress or deter speech that the president of the United States doesn’t like.”
AI, Grok, and the Quiet Overhaul of Government
Inside federal agencies like the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA), DOGE’s digital overhaul is already being felt. Trump-appointed officials informed EPA managers that AI would be used to monitor platforms such as Microsoft Teams for any signs of anti-Trump or anti-Musk sentiment. Though not all AI deployments could be confirmed independently, sources indicated that DOGE’s AI scanning is part of a larger plan to identify employees misaligned with the administration's goals.
DOGE has also integrated Grok — Musk’s AI chatbot — heavily into its workflow, though the exact functions it performs remain unclear. The goal, as Musk has publicly stated, is to slash federal spending by $1 trillion, or 15 per cent of the national budget.
Beyond the EPA, the Office of Personnel Management (OPM) — which oversees federal human resources — has seen significant disruption. More than 100 tech workers have reportedly lost access to essential cloud tools, leaving just two individuals with administrative privileges, including Greg Hogan, a political appointee and former AI startup executive. Hogan declined to comment.
Critics argue that Musk and Trump are using DOGE not just for efficiency, but to reshape the federal workforce along ideological lines. Democrats warn of a purge of non-partisan civil servants, while even some Republicans are uneasy about the opaque operations.
Whether this effort results in streamlined governance or a chilling clampdown on dissent remains to be seen — but one thing is clear: DOGE’s AI-powered mission is already leaving a deep imprint on Washington.
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