Elon Musk, the CEO of Twitter, recently told Fox News host Tucker Carlson that he had begun work on an artificial intelligence (AI) rival to Open AI’s ChatGPT, which Musk co-founded in 2015. This project, entitled “TruthGPT”, will be an AI designed with the intent to seek out the truth about the universe. Additionally, Musk has made critical remarks about Open AI, based on anecdotal evidence that the technology had been “trained” to be politically correct and “woke”. He further expressed dissatisfaction with Open AI’s decision to become a proprietary and closed source.
Currently, major players in the AI market remain Google and Open AI. Musk expressed interest in creating an alternate option with TruthGPT. He stepped down from Open AI’s board in 2018 and is now going to work on his own project. Despite Musk’s enthusiasm for the project, it should be taken with a grain of salt as he is noted for working on many projects that are completed late or are not completed at all.
For example, Musk’s companies have produced vehicles like the Semi Truck and the Cybertruck that have not been delivered on time. Early March of this year marked the incorporation of Elon’s AI venture, “X.AI”. Since then, Musk has been contacting AI researchers in order to form his team.
During the interview, Musk acknowledged the risks of AI, citing it as potentially a more dangerous form of mismanaged aircraft design or car production because AI “has the potential of civilizational destruction.” In order to address this, he proposed the idea of a government agency tasked with regulating AI technology.
In response to this issue, a group of 500 experts, including Musk, wrote an open letter in March calling for a six month moratorium on AI technology. The goal of this letter is to create a better understanding of AI systems, their development and their effects. This knowledge would then be used to enhance safety measures and create a better system for controlling AI.
Given all this, it is clear that Elon Musk is eager to make TruthGPT a reality. His experience as a tech billionaire, as well as his ambition to make the world a better place, have propelled him towards this project. For those who are interested, the second and last part of Elon Musk’s interview with Tucker Carlson is scheduled to air tonight.
