A Bot can sign in to your tools and act for you. So how do you decide what it does on its own and what waits for your yes? Here's how xAI explains Grok Bot's approval rules, from its official page, its Grok Bot 101 guide, and its changelog, all checked on Oct 28, 2026.
Auto-review: a second check before actions run
xAI's product page says sensitive actions can go through Auto Review before they run. Its Grok Bot 101 guide explains more: Bots are kept in check by permissions, a reviewer, and allow and block lists. A separate review agent checks proposed actions and can allow them, block them, or escalate them to you.
The guide also makes a point worth knowing. If you log in to a site like an online store on a computer the Bot can use, it could technically act there the way a person could. That's exactly why the rules matter.
Rules written in plain language
xAI's guide says you write the rules in natural language in Settings, and allow and block lists steer the reviewer. In other words, the rules are a prompt, not code. xAI notes you're trusting the model to follow what you wrote, while the work still happens in an isolated environment.
The Permissions section
xAI's changelog for version 0.77.0 (October 26, 2026) lists these changes:
- Two lists: Settings has a Permissions section that lists Auto-review rules under Always Ask and Allow without Asking, each with its own Add Rule button.
- Longer approval window: approval cards stay open for 30 minutes instead of 10, in the app and in Slack.
- Fewer needless prompts: Auto-review lets through more private actions you can undo without an approval card, and background work you start in your own words no longer asks for approval to start.
- Clearer cards: rule cards in chat show each rule as a sentence, and approval cards name a connector by its service.
The changelog marks the Permissions section as needing Grok Bot 0.75.2 or later.
Starter rules for a small business: our suggestions
These are our ideas, not xAI's. Adjust them to how you work.
- Always ask before sending anything to a customer, client, or vendor.
- Always ask before any purchase, payment, or refund.
- Always ask before deleting files, records, or messages.
- Always ask before posting anything publicly.
- Allow without asking for reading, sorting, and drafting inside your own files.
Review your rules every few weeks. If you approve the same safe action every day, it may belong on the allow list. If something surprised you, add an Always Ask rule. For the bigger picture, see our security and privacy guide and our lesson on human oversight.
Keep exploring
Grok Bot Security & Privacy
How xAI says Grok Bot handles your data, plus simple questions to ask before you hand a Bot real work.
Take a lookThe Grok Bot Vault
What the Vault stores, how payments and 1Password sign-ins work, and good habits.
Take a lookGiving Your Bot Its Own Email
How a Bot claims an address, sends drafts for approval, and uses tagged addresses.
Take a lookUsing Grok Bot in Slack
Team Bots, Slack drafts and approvals, and privacy in shared channels, per xAI.
Take a lookConnecting Your Apps to Grok Bot
Connectors, plugins, and the Connect Apps screen, plus how you stay in control.
Take a lookTeach a Bot a Task
Show a Bot a task once, and it saves a routine it can run on its own, per xAI.
Take a lookGrok Bot directory profile · Official product page
Sources
- Grok Bot — official product page (xAI) (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Grok Bot 101 (official guide) (checked Oct 28, 2026)
- Grok Bot changelog (checked Oct 28, 2026)
Where each fact came from
- Auto Review · checked Oct 28, 2026 · rechecked regularly — Grok Bot — official product page (xAI)
- Reviewer and allow/block lists · checked Oct 28, 2026 · rechecked regularly — Grok Bot 101 (official guide)
- Permissions section · checked Oct 28, 2026 · rechecked regularly — Grok Bot changelog
- Approval card timing · checked Oct 28, 2026 · rechecked regularly — Grok Bot changelog
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