Grok Skills: A Practical Guide

Grok skills are saved instructions that teach Grok how to do a particular job, so it applies the same method across conversations. xAI launched them on 18 May 2026 with built-in skills for Word documents, presentations, spreadsheets and PDFs, plus a Skill Creator that builds new skills through conversation. Grok connectors, including custom MCP servers, give Grok access to the apps and data a skill needs.

xAI announced Grok Skills on 18 May 2026 (xAI: Grok Skills). Every account comes with built-in skills for:

• Word documents: creating and editing .docx files.
• Presentations: building slide decks.
• Spreadsheets: formatted sheets and data analysis.
• PDFs: creating, merging, splitting and extracting.
• The Skill Creator: building new custom skills through conversation.

You can create your own skills by describing them to Grok, uploading files or writing them from scratch. If you customise a built-in skill, your version takes priority. Skills launched on grok.com and in the iOS and Android apps.

Think of a skill as a new starter's job card. Grok already knows how to write and build a spreadsheet. Your skill tells it how your business does one job: the steps, the format and the checks.

One gap to note: xAI's announcement doesn't say which file formats the upload accepts. If you have a SKILL.md skill from another AI tool, check what the upload accepts in your account and test the result before relying on it.

xAI introduced Grok Bot on 11 August 2026: agents that sign in to the tools you use, work across apps and come back when something needs your approval. It launched on the macOS desktop app and iOS, for SuperGrok plans and some Cursor plans (xAI: Introducing Grok Bot).

In Grok Bot, a skill is a reusable process that sets out the steps, the tools to use, the output and the actions that need your approval. Skills are shared across the Bots in your workspace, but each Bot still needs the right connectors to carry them out. Routines run work on a schedule. Where it's available, you can also show a Bot a browser task, recorded for up to ten minutes, and it drafts a skill for you to review (xAI docs: Skills, routines and automations). xAI's own guide says Grok Bot supports the same MCP servers, plugins and skills as Cursor (xAI: Grok Bot 101).

A skill says how to do the work. A connector gives Grok access to the place the work lives (Skills vs MCP explains the split). xAI launched connectors on 6 May 2026 for web, iOS and Android, covering SharePoint, Outlook, OneDrive, Google Workspace, Notion, GitHub and Linear (xAI: Connectors).

The same launch added "Bring Your Own MCP", which connects Grok to a custom MCP server, such as an internal tool or knowledge base. To add one, go to grok.com/connectors, select New Connector, then Custom, enter the MCP server's URL and complete any sign-in. The server must be reachable over the public internet (xAI docs: Connectors).

On Business and Enterprise plans, a team admin first adds the connector in the xAI console. Team members then connect their own accounts (xAI docs: Connector management).

Coastline Marketing, a fictional agency, wants every proposal to follow the same structure. Its team uses Grok, and the proposal template and client notes live in Google Drive.

The setup has three parts:

• A proposal skill made with the Skill Creator. It sets the sections (summary, goals, scope, pricing, next steps), says to price only from the current rate card, and marks anything the client hasn't confirmed as "to confirm".
• The Google Drive connector, so Grok can open the template, the rate card and the meeting notes for the client, Harbour Foods (also fictional).
• The built-in Word skill, which produces the finished .docx file.

A team member asks: "Draft the Harbour Foods proposal from Tuesday's meeting notes." Grok follows the proposal skill, reads the notes and rate card through the connector, and builds the document with the Word skill. The skill stops at a draft. Sending it to the client is a person's decision.

• Check that your plan includes skills and connectors.
• Connect the storage your job needs: on the web, select + then Connectors; on mobile, go to Settings, then Connectors.
• Ask the Skill Creator to build a skill. Describe the job, the inputs, the output and where it should stop.
• Read the draft and add what to do when information is missing.
• Run it on a real example, then ask Grok which files it opened.
• Run the three tests below before anyone else relies on it.
• For Grok Bot, do the task once by hand with the Bot, save it as a skill, and only then make it a routine.

• A normal request. Use real meeting notes. Check every price against the rate card and every goal against the notes.
• Incomplete input. Disconnect Drive or point to a missing file. Grok should say it can't reach the source, not write the client's goals from general knowledge.
• An unrelated request. Ask for a social media post. The proposal skill shouldn't shape the answer.

A skill tells your AI what to do. Your knowledge base shows it how, in detail. Your company context tells it who it's for. The Contexta harness brings them together, in every AI.

Contexta holds one set of skills with your company context, covering your terminology, naming and formats, set for the company and adjusted for each team. Your knowledge base stays in your own SharePoint or Google Drive, which Grok can reach through its own connectors. Company, team and personal spaces give each team its own home and rules, and every change is kept in version history with compare and restore.

Contexta delivers skills over MCP, and Grok accepts custom MCP connectors. Even so, we haven't tested a Contexta connection with Grok or Grok Bot end to end, so we don't list Grok as supported yet. Contexta is tested with Claude, ChatGPT and Cursor. Check Integrations for supported setups and see Product for what Contexta does.