Elon Musk is reportedly assembling a team of AI researchers and engineers to launch an artificial intelligence company that will compete with OpenAI, the creator of ChatGPT. According to the Financial Times, Musk is in talks with several investors about the project and recently incorporated a company called X.AI, of which he is the sole director. Musk has reportedly recruited engineers from leading AI labs such as DeepMind and obtained thousands of high-powered GPU processors for the new venture. The move appears to signal a change of direction for Musk, who recently co-signed a letter calling for a pause in AI research.
Musk’s move into the fast-changing generative AI space puts him in competition with tech giants such as Microsoft, Google, and Amazon, as well as OpenAI. Musk co-founded OpenAI in 2015, but left the board after three years due to disagreements over AI safety. Musk has expressed concern over the potential existential threats that generative AI may pose, particularly the capability of models like GPT-4 to spread false information and demonstrate political bias.
Musk’s new AI startup is reportedly part of his plans to create an “everything app” called “X,” which he hopes will offer a wide range of services from social media to electric vehicles. In company filings, Musk recently changed the name of Twitter to X Corp, which is seen as a signal of his ambitions to expand beyond his current business portfolio that includes Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink, and The Boring Company.
With the new AI project, Musk is expected to challenge OpenAI’s dominance in the field of generative AI, which has been revolutionized by GPT-3, the largest AI model ever created. The potential impact of Musk’s new venture on the development of AI technology remains to be seen, but his involvement is likely to fuel the ongoing debate over the ethical and moral implications of AI research and development.