Grok alternatives for chat and writing come in five kinds: the other general assistants, hosted assistants that sell themselves on privacy and fewer refusals, a writing app, an adults-only app, and an open model on your own computer. Which one you want depends on what "fewer refusals" means to you. If it means frank answers to everyday questions, several of these will do. If it means adult fiction and roleplay, the general assistants will not, and you need a tool made for adults.
We make Hemmingway and Hemmingway Unlocked, its adults-only side. We have not tested what Grok will and will not write, so this page makes no claim about that.
What Grok is
Grok's own site describes it as an AI assistant built by SpaceXAI, and its help pages also use the name xAI. The site sums it up as chat, creating images, writing code, and real-time answers from the web and X.
- Where. On the web at grok.com and in apps for iPhone and Android. It ties in with X, and you can link an X account.
- What else. Image and video generation under the name Imagine, a voice mode, and companions, which its help pages say are in the iPhone app only.
- Cost. A free tier with limits on chat and voice, and paid plans.
The pages we could read do not set out what Grok refuses.
Why people look elsewhere
- Writing that sounds like a person. You want emails, messages and stories that do not read as machine-made.
- Adult fiction in a text app. You want explicit or dark scenes written without a refusal.
- Privacy. You want chats that are not stored on a company's servers, or an account that has nothing to do with a social network.
- A plain chat app. You do not need images, video, code and search in one place.
- Running it yourself. Your own model on your own computer.
The options side by side
| Tool | What it is | Good for | Watch out for |
|---|---|---|---|
| ChatGPT, Claude, Gemini | General assistants | Everyday questions, research, code, strong writing | Each refused an adult roleplay request in our test |
| Venice | A hosted assistant that calls itself private and uncensored | Text and images under one account | Its privacy terms differ from model to model |
| Lumo | Proton's privacy-first assistant | Everyday questions kept confidential | It does not describe itself as uncensored |
| Hemmingway | Our writing app | Messages, emails and short stories that sound like you | Not a general assistant. No images |
| Hemmingway Unlocked | Our adults-only chat and writing app | Adult fiction, roleplay and frank chat | Text only. A short list of things it never writes |
| Running an open model yourself | Ollama, LM Studio or KoboldCpp on your computer | Nothing leaves your machine, and the rules are yours | Strong hardware. Small models write less well |
The other general assistants
ChatGPT, Claude and Gemini do what Grok does in outline: questions, writing, code. They will not suit you if refusals are the problem. On 27 September 2026 we sent the same adult roleplay request to all three, each in a fresh chat, and all three refused. Why ChatGPT refuses roleplay has the replies and the reasons.
For ordinary writing they are strong, and the best ChatGPT alternatives for writing compares them.
Hosted assistants built on privacy
Venice describes itself as private, uncensored AI for text, images, characters and video. Its privacy page says your conversation history stays on your device and that prompts pass through its servers without being stored. Of the hosted options here, it is the closest in shape to Grok, and it makes images too. Venice AI alternatives has more.
Lumo is Proton's assistant. Its site says it keeps no logs, encrypts saved chats so that only your device can read them, and never trains on your data. It is about privacy, not about what it will write. We have not tested either.
For writing: Hemmingway
Regular Hemmingway is built for one thing: writing that reads as if a person wrote it. You say who a message is for and what you want said, and it gives you the text, without three options and a paragraph of notes.
In our own blind test of everyday writing, CommunicationBench, Hemmingway-1 came first, level with one of Claude's models, and the Grok model we tested placed behind it. It is our own benchmark, the scores are on the model card and in the results, and it does not measure refusals.
It is not a replacement for Grok as a general assistant. It does not make images or video, and it is built for writing, not for code or research. It is English-first, and better at short writing than at novels. There is a free trial with no card needed, and you can open it in the browser.
For adult fiction and chat: Hemmingway Unlocked
Hemmingway Unlocked is the adults-only side of Hemmingway: the same app with an uncensored model, at wise.hemmingway.io. It asks first whether you are 18 or over, then shows its rules.
- What it writes. Sex between adults, explicit and in full, and dark, violent stories. Consensual kink is fine. It does not lecture or refuse on grounds of taste.
- What it never writes. It is uncensored, and a few things are off the table however you ask. Never in anything sexual: anyone under 18, a real person, animals, family, or anyone who does not want it. Never at all: help hurting, stalking or scamming a real person, weapons, explosives, making drugs, harmful software, or help with suicide or self-harm. The list is in our terms, and every answer has a Report button.
- Where chats live. In your browser, on your device. They are never saved to your account or our servers, and never trained on. Each message passes through our servers to be answered and is not kept. Chats do not sync between devices, and clearing the browser's data deletes them.
- Cost. It is free to try, with no card. After the trial it is a monthly membership, which also opens regular Hemmingway on the same plan.
Open Hemmingway UnlockedTry Hemmingway
Where it does not fit: it makes no images or video, so it does not replace Grok's Imagine. It has no companions with avatars or voices. And it is not a model you can download: its weights are not out yet, and we plan to open-source it soon.
Running an open model yourself
Ollama, LM Studio and KoboldCpp each run open models on your own computer. Nothing you type is sent anywhere, and no company's policy sits between you and the model. The cost is hardware and set-up time. Uncensored LLM explains what to look for.
How to choose
- You want a general assistant and refusals are not the issue. ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini.
- You want a general assistant that calls itself uncensored, with images. Look at Venice.
- You want everyday questions kept private. Lumo.
- You want writing that sounds like you. Hemmingway.
- You want adult fiction, roleplay or frank chat in text. Hemmingway Unlocked.
- Nothing may leave your computer. Run an open model yourself.
Common questions
What is the best alternative to Grok?
It depends on the job. For a general assistant, ChatGPT, Claude or Gemini. For writing to people, Hemmingway, which came first in our own blind test of everyday writing. For adult fiction and roleplay, a tool made for adults such as Hemmingway Unlocked. We do not rank products we have not tested.
Is there a Grok alternative with fewer refusals?
For adult fiction and roleplay, yes: an adults-only app or a model you run yourself. Hemmingway Unlocked writes explicit scenes between adults and dark stories, and keeps a short list of things it never writes. We have not tested Grok's own refusals, so we cannot say how the two compare.
Is Grok uncensored?
Its own pages, as far as we could read them, do not describe it that way, and we have not tested it. If you need to know whether it will write something, check its terms and try it. Every hosted assistant has rules somewhere.
Is there a free alternative to Grok?
Running an open model yourself costs nothing if you already own a strong enough computer. Hemmingway has a free trial with no card needed, and Hemmingway Unlocked is free to try. For the other services, check each one's own site, as free tiers change.