Elon Musk Announces a New AI Venture

Elon Musk on Wednesday announced the formation of a new company focused on artificial intelligence, after months of hinting at plans to build a rival to ChatGPT.

The company, called xAI, unveiled a website and a team of a dozen workers. The new company will be led by Musk, according to the website, and will work closely with Twitter, Tesla, and other companies.

Musk was an early backer of ChatGPT-creator OpenAI, but was later part of a group of influential technology leaders who called for guardrails to be put around the rapid development of the technology.

Musk’s announcement of the new company comes months after he warned in an interview that he thinks AI could cause “civilization destruction”. Few other details on the company’s mission were immediately available, but the website indicates it is actively recruiting staff. 

The announcement comes at a precarious moment for Musk. His social media company Twitter has undergone some challenging times after the controversial business leader’s autocratic and seemingly chaotic remarks and actions alienated some users and advertisers. This opened the door for fellow technology company Meta to launch a rival social media application known as Threads.

In addition to Twitter, Musk runs several other companies, including Tesla, SpaceX, Neuralink and The Boring Company. Analysts are not surprised by Musk’s entry into the competitive AI space as this is the terrain upon which all major technology firms are expected to battle over the coming years.