I have no problem being hated: Elon Musk
Technology
In an interview Musk opened up publicly to a degree never seen before
(Web Desk) - In a wide-ranging, unfiltered and sometimes confessional interview with Andrew Ross Sorkin of The New York Times on Wednesday evening, Elon Musk made a string of controversial comments.
In fact, toward the end of the interview, Sorkin called it a trip inside the mind of Musk.
Shortly after Musk took the stage, he proclaimed: "I have no problem being hated.” And perhaps one of the most astounding exchanges in recent broadcast history went on from there.
On the controversy about antisemitism swirling around him:
Musk said retweeting an antisemitic post "was one of the most foolish things" he's ever shared. And later: “I am quite sorry. I should in retrospect not have replied to that particular post. ... essentially I handed a loaded gun to the people who hated me."
Still later, he said of Twitter (before it became X): "The degree to which the old Twitter was a sock puppet of the government was ridiculous. ... My aspiration for the X platform is that it is the best source of truth."
On his recent trip to Israel:
Musk said the trip was "not an apology tour."
On companies pausing their advertisements on X, formerly Twitter, because of his comments:
Musk said: “If someone is going to try to blackmail me with advertising, blackmail me with money, go...”
On the recent dismissal and subsequent rehiring of Sam Altman as CEO of OpenAI:
Musk said the firing "either it was a serious thing and we should know what it is, or it was not a serious thing and the board should resign ... I don't think it was trivial, and I'm quite concerned that there is some dangerous element of AI that they have discovered" He also said he has "mixed feelings" about Altman.
On the regulation of artificial intelligence:
Musk said: "In my view AI is more dangerous than nuclear bombs."
On his creation of the Tesla electric vehicle:
Musk said he has done more for the environment "than any human on earth. ... We make the best cars ... whether you hate me, like me or are indifferent, do you want the best car or not the best car?"
On the UAW and movement to unionize:
Musk said: "I disagree with the idea of unions ... I don't like anything that creates lords and peasants." He added: "There are many people at Tesla that have gone from working on the line" to more executive roles.
On TikTok:
Musk said "It has the most viral antisemitic content by far." He added, “I stopped using TikTok when I felt the AI probing my mind.”
