Elon Musk unveils xAI to go head-to-head with OpenAI – Here’s all you need to know
Elon Musk, the billionaire entrepreneur known for his achievements in electric cars, space exploration, and social media, launched his long-awaited AI startup, xAI. With a clear objective of disrupting the AI landscape dominated by tech giants, the company sets its sights on creating an innovative alternative to OpenAI's ChatGPT.
Musk has emerged as a vocal proponent for prudence and oversight in the progress of AI. His recurring apprehension revolves around the potential dangers of unbridled AI advancements, which he fears could lead to significant "civilizational destruction."
In a proactive response to these concerns, xAI is set to adopt a distinctive approach to prioritize the safety of its AI systems.
In a recent Twitter Spaces event, Musk detailed his strategy for developing a safer AI. Departing from the conventional approach of explicitly programming morality, xAI seeks to construct an AI that is profoundly inquisitive.
Musk contends that by fostering the AI's exploration of the fundamental aspects of the universe, it will naturally prioritize actions that benefit humanity. Emphasising the intrinsic fascination and worth of humanity, he posited that it surpasses all other subjects of interest.
"If it tried to understand the true nature of the universe, that's actually the best thing that I can come up with from an AI safety standpoint. I think it is going to be pro-humanity from the standpoint that humanity is just much more interesting than not-humanity," Musk said, according to a report by Business Today.
Furthermore, Musk made a bold prediction, foreseeing the advent of superintelligence—AI surpassing human intelligence—within the next five to six years. This projection underscores the sense of urgency Musk attaches to the development of responsible and beneficial AI systems. His aim is to ensure that the technology yields a positive and constructive impact on society as a whole.
Despite Musk's role as a co-founder of OpenAI, the entity behind ChatGPT, he relinquished his position on the board in 2018. It is worth noting that OpenAI counts Microsoft as one of its investors, underscoring the substantial engagement of major technology players in the realm of AI advancement.
For xAI, Musk has curated an exceptional team comprising engineers with notable backgrounds at renowned tech companies. The team includes individuals such as Igor Babuschkin, who previously worked at Google's DeepMind; Tony Wu, a former Google employee; Christian Szegedy, a research scientist at Google; and Greg Yang, who has prior experience at Microsoft.
During the month of March, Musk established a fresh company named X.AI Corp, situated in Nevada, where he serves as the sole director. This decisive action showcases Musk's unwavering commitment to delving deeper into AI technology.
Prior to this development, Musk had hinted at the upcoming launch of TruthGPT, an AI model with a primary objective of pursuing utmost truth. This model aims to rival Google's Bard and Microsoft's Bing AI, both designed to comprehend the complexities of the universe.