Musk Charges US Government Had Full Access To Messages
It came as a surprise to billionaire Twitter owner Elon Musk that the federal government had unfettered access to users’ private direct messages prior to his acquisition of the social media platform.
Interviewed by Fox News’ Tucker Carlson, the world’s richest person revealed that Washington could even spy on private correspondence between any users. Musk said the knowledge of the extent of government penetration of the platform was not something he expected.
This disclosure continued his pledge to increase the company’s transparency.
Musk admitted that it “blew my mind” to learn how thoroughly government agencies had access to the inner workings of the platform.
He then confirmed to Carlson that the government’s pervasive presence reached DMs.
Musk addressed the recent dust-up with NPR over Twitter’s designation of the leftist outlet as “state-affiliated media.” Public radio supporters were outraged over the accurate labeling of NPR, though Musk changed it to “government-funded.”
The media group still announced that it would no longer utilize the platform.
If existing evidence of its left-wing bias was not already prevalent, the Biden White House rushed to NPR’s defense. Spokesperson Karine Jean-Pierre said “If anyone were to follow their coverage, it is clear that they are indeed an independent news organization.”
Musk did not have an overall positive outlook for artificial intelligence, which occupies current headlines as the technology surges leaps and bounds. He expressed concerns that AI has potential to cause much more serious problems than poor designs or faulty product maintenance.
In a dire warning from someone who otherwise stands to profit from the advancements, Musk cautioned that “it has the potential — however small one may regard that probability, but it is non-trivial — it has the potential for civilizational destruction.”
He urged developers and global leaders to closely watch the pace of development. “It’s crucial,” he explained, “that we establish regulations and guidelines to prevent any catastrophic consequences.”
Musk recently founded his own AI platform, X.AI. It is lined up to compete with other AI firms such as ChatGPT. Many are growing alarmed at the speed of AI advancement, including the ability to accurately reproduce voices indistinguishable from political leaders and celebrities.
