Elon Musk has been making headlines with his incorporation of X.AI in Nevada, potentially leading to plans of constructing a rival for OpenAI. Musk has long been critical of OpenAI, the most notable AI startup of its kind, and back in February, a tech news site reported that the entrepreneur had contacted multiple researchers to form a team. Igor Babuschkin, previous employee of Alphabet Inc’s DeepMind, confessed to being one of the people Musk had asked to take part in the project and discuss the formation of said group.
X.AI is a company developing popular natural language processing technologies, offerings such as chatbot tools and tools for automated data entry. By aligning with them, Musk seeks to further his goal of creating a bigger and more reliable AI research unit, which could be more consolidated and independent than OpenAI’s. Along with many other goal and initiatives, it seems that Musk is determined to increase the development of Artificial Intelligence, and this could be the biggest move yet.
OpenAI is an AI research lab founded by tech celebrities such as Elon Musk, Sam Altman, and Greg Brockman in 2015. Their goal was to aid the development of Artificial Intelligence by committing to widely research it and promote responsible developing. Nevertheless, as the company has grown, Musk has been vocal about his concerns regarding its independence, which he fears could be compromised. Consequently, the incorporation of X.AI and the discussion of creating a rival for OpenAI appears to be an attempt to guarantee a more trustworthy and autonomous approach.
Igor Babuschkin was one of the people Elon Musk contacted with regards to the intended project. He was a former employee of DeepMind, which is a research facility focusing on Artificial Intelligence, founded by Demis Hassabis, Shuai Yu, and Mustafa Suleyman in 2010. During his time at DeepMind, Babuschkin developed tools and models for a more effective AI, such as environment simulations, deep learning algorithms and complex computer models. His expertise and experience within the field certainly make him a valuable asset for the entrepreneur’s ambitions.
Overall, between X.AI and the potential formation of a rival to OpenAI, it looks like Elon Musk has more than one trick up his sleeve. His ultimate goal seems to be furthering the development of Artificial Intelligence, and by joining forces with Igor Babuschkin and X.AI in Nevada, the mogul appears deadset on making it happen.
