The hypocrisy of Elon Musk and his vision of an AI doomsday [Editorial]

In a distant (or not-so-distant) future, artificial intelligence could become an “immortal dictator” we can never escape from. If we stay in AI’s ultimate goal—whatever that might be—it can simply destroy humanity like an anthill. Competition for AI superiority at the national level is most likely to cause WW3. It’s more dangerous than nukes and vastly riskier than North Korea. Simply put, AI will be the best or worst thing ever for humanity.

Ok, wait. Do I really think this is true? Nah, I’m not such a skeptic, although I can imagine many ways artificial intelligence can go wrong at times. These words actually belong to a certain Elon Musk. Thus, the question is, does HE really believe that?

For years, Elon Musk had a reputation as an innovative, ambitious, disruptive, and inspiring visionary. Somebody whose strong cult of personality often forgiven his demanding, relentless, impatient, and maybe at times even intimidating approach towards his personnel.

Talented people found motivation in working for Musk, although it was also an enormous challenge for many. Challenge they were willing to sign up for.

Statements like the ones at the top were often rendered controversial by the media; however, they were also driving the motivation for those in search of an innovative project they could contribute to. Thus, “Does he really believe that?” is indeed an important question. Important for those who work for Musk’s causes and equally important for those cheering for his break-or-make projects.

Because of this, I was very surprised by the revelation that upon its release, Musk’s latest Grok AI didn’t include the necessary limitations and safety measures to prohibit users from generating malicious content—for example, realistic violent images. Musk doesn’t care. It is more than clear that his desire for Grok to be non-woke and different from any other competing AI model has a higher priority than safety.

Why is it concerning? It is Elon Musk who has been painting pictures of the dark AI future that will take over the world for years. Heck, he even founded Neuralink—not just to help disabled people but to ultimately merge our minds with machines to keep up with them.

Today? It is the very same Elon Musk who personally contributes to malicious uses of artificial intelligence. And he doesn’t seem bothered. In fact, it looks like he is enjoying it. Ironic, isn’t it?

Despite all the hatred from the media Musk had endured for the past 20-plus years, there was always a strong community around him. Not many individuals or even companies can say that there are dedicated news websites worldwide focused on their projects.

Yet, many people—including me—are disappointed with Musk’s personal behavior and business decisions over the past few years. I am disappointed to the point that even using his products and services feels wrong at times. Just think of all the “I bought this before we knew Elon was crazy” Tesla bumper stickers.

Musk’s vision of the future can be exciting, even though it is often presented in dark colors. Thus, I’m not surprised that there are still lots of fans who are willing to close an eye or two when he logs into his X account.

However, if he continues to undermine the foundation of his own vision, Musk will find himself walking on thin ice that will inevitably break...

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