Put a nerve implant on someone this year and don’t censor Twitter: Elon Musk reasserted his rank as the world tech star in front of 3,600 admirers in Paris on Friday, but without mentioning the Tesla factory the Elysee dreams of for France.
• Also read: Elon Musk plans to start giving human brain implants in 2023
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For two hours at the Dôme de Paris, the controversial billionaire who also owns SpaceX, as a guest of the VivaTech show, maintained his image as an unrestrained visionary and shared his advice for success with fascinated start-up executives and aspiring entrepreneurs.
Despite a lunchtime meeting with French President Emmanuel Macron, he said nothing about the possible establishment of a Tesla factory in France.
However, he had promised in May during the Thing France show that the electric car maker would make “significant investments” in the country. “Let’s work together,” the head of state nevertheless tweeted in English after their meeting, just as the American head of state began his conference.
The only announcement from Elon Musk on this occasion: He said he wants to provide a first human in 2023 with nerve implants from his company Neuralink, which has just received approval to conduct tests in the United States. “Later this year we will do our first human chip implantation for someone who has a form of quadriplegia,” he said.
The purpose of these brain chips is to allow the brain and computers to communicate directly with each other to help people who are paralyzed or suffering from neurological disorders.
Speaking to an overheated room, he also defended a censorship-free Twitter, saying that artificial intelligence risks unleashing an “apocalypse” for humanity. Positions that this libertarian has repeated many times.
“If we’re going to be hit by an AI triggered apocalypse, I think I’d still like to be alive,” he smiled.
But he didn’t really give up. When Orange boss Christel Heydemann suddenly challenged him on the reasons why Twitter just left the European Union’s code of conduct on disinformation, Elon Musk replied: If “someone who says something you don’t like” is blocked, ” that’s just the case.” It’s a matter of time before censorship turns against you.
Hiding behind his idea of freedom of expression, he finally admitted that “being harassed (on social media) was a bad experience.”
Incidentally, he admitted to overpaying – 44 billion – Twitter. “If I’m so smart, why did I pay so much for it?” he quipped. “I’m not the devil,” he also began with a malicious laugh at VivaTech co-founder Maurice Lévy, who moderated this conference.
He previously had lunch with LVMH boss Bernard Arnault, with whom he is in contention for the top spot in Forbes magazine’s annual list of the world’s top assets.
Elon Musk’s presentation in France is not over yet: he gave an interview to France 2, which will be broadcast on Monday evening after the news at 8 p.m.
Musk previously met Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni in Rome on Thursday. They touched on some “crucial issues” like “AI risks” and “birth,” she tweeted.
The American boss with extreme political positions has become the darling of conservatives across the Atlantic for fighting censorship and restoring former President Donald Trump’s account.