Toggle light / dark theme

[Exclusive] Elon Musk: A future worth getting excited about | TED | Tesla Gigafactory interview

Elon talks about x-risks and making us a multi-planetary species, amongst other things.


What’s on Elon Musk’s mind? In this exclusive conversation with head of TED Chris Anderson, Musk details how the radical new innovations he’s working on — Tesla’s intelligent humanoid robot Optimus, SpaceX’s otherworldly Starship and Neuralink’s brain-machine interfaces, among others — could help maximize the lifespan of humanity and create a world where goods and services are abundant and accessible for all. It’s a compelling vision of a future worth getting excited about. (Recorded at the Tesla Texas Gigafactory on April 6, 2022)

Just over a week after this interview was filmed, Elon Musk joined TED2022 for another (live) conversation, where he discussed his bid to purchase Twitter, the biggest regret of his career, how his brain works and more. Watch that conversation here: https://youtu.be/cdZZpaB2kDM

0:14 A future that’s worth getting excited about.
2:44 The sustainable energy economy, batteries and 300 terawatt hours of installed capacity.
7:06 “Humanity will solve sustainable energy.“
8:47 Artificial intelligence and Tesla’s progress on full self-driving cars.
19:46 Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robot.
21:46 “People have no idea, this is going to be bigger than the car.“
23:14 Avoiding an AI dystopia.
26:39 The age of abundance.
28:20 Neuralink and brain-machine interfaces.
36:55 SpaceX’s Starship and the mission to build a city on Mars.
46:54 “It’s the people of Mars’ city.“
50:14 What else can Starship do and help explore?
53:18 Possible synergies between Tesla, SpaceX, The Boring Company and Neuralink.
54:44 Intercontinental travel via Starship.
58:41 Being a billionaire.
1:02:31 Philanthropy as love of humanity.
1:03:39 Population collapse and birth rates as a threat to future of human civilization.
1:04:13 Elon’s drive.
1:06:06 “I think if you want the future to be good, you must make it so.”

If you love watching TED Talks like this one, become a TED Member to support our mission of spreading ideas: http://ted.com/membership.

Elon Musk acquires Twitter for roughly $44 billion

The company’s board and the Tesla CEO hammered out the final details of his $54.20 a share bid.

The agreement marks the close of a dramatic courtship and a sharp change of heart at the social-media network.

Elon Musk acquired Twitter for $44 billion on Monday, the company announced, giving the world’s richest person command of one of its most influential social media sites — which serves as a platform for political leaders, a sounding board for experts across industries and an information hub for millions of everyday users.

The acquisition followed weeks of evangelizing on the necessity of “free speech,” as the Tesla CEO seized on Twitter’s role as the “de facto town square” and took umbrage with content moderation efforts he has seen as an escalation toward censorship. He said he sees Twitter as essential to the functioning of democracy and said the economics are not a concern.

Ownership of Twitter gives Musk power over hugely consequential societal and political issues, perhaps most significantly the ban on former president Donald Trump that the website enacted in response to the Jan. 6 riots.

Under the terms of the deal, Twitter will become a private company and shareholders will receive $54.20 per share, the company said in a news release. The deal is expected to close this year.

“Free speech is the bedrock of a functioning democracy, and Twitter is the digital town square where matters vital to the future of humanity are debated,” Musk said in the release. “I also want to make Twitter better than ever by enhancing the product with new features, making the algorithms open source to increase trust, defeating the spam bots, and authenticating all humans. Twitter has tremendous potential — I look forward to working with the company and the community of users to unlock it.”

Elon Musk’s SpaceX Signs First Deal With Major U.S. Airline To Provide Free Wi-Fi For Passengers

Elon Musk’s SpaceX has signed its first ever deal with a major U.S. airline to provide wireless internet to passengers for free using the Starlink satellite network.

The deal with Hawaiian Airlines, which could be implemented as soon as next year, is expected to increase pressure on rival airlines to provide free Wi-Fi for passengers.

“Hawaiian doesn’t currently offer inflight Wi-Fi and has an extensive network of flights over the Pacific Ocean, serving the mainland U.S., Japan, Australia and New Zealand, among other destinations, from Hawaii,” CNBC reported. “It plans to offer Starlink connectivity on its flights out of its home state to cities throughout the mainland U.S. and to its international destinations.”

Elon Musk said his Neuralink brain chip could help treat morbid obesity. Scientists say it’s a long shot — but not an impossibility

Elon Musk believes his Neuralink brain chip could help treat morbid obesity. Experts say the billionaire’s dream isn’t as far-fetched as it may seem.

“I don’t think it is any more implausible than other claims for the potential of neurotechnology,” Professor Andrew Jackson, an expert in neural interfaces at Newcastle University, told Insider.

Musk made the suggestion in a TED interview on April 14, thereby adding “morbid obesity” to a growing list of ailments he believes Neuralink could help treat.

/* */