Elon Musk slaps down OpenAI: "No one committed suicide because of GROOK, unlike ChatGBT."
In a recently published affidavit in Elon Musk v. OpenAI, Musk attacked the company’s safety record, claiming that his company, XAI, prioritizes safety. Musk went so far as to say: "No one committed suicide because of GROK, but it seems some did because of ChatGBT." This comment came in the context of questioning about a public letter signed by Musk in March 2023, in which he called on AI labs to suspend the development of AI systems more powerful than "GPT-4," OpenAI's flagship model at the time, for at least six months, according to a report by the technology news site TechCrunch, which was reviewed by Al Arabiya Business. The letter, signed by more than 1,100 people, including many AI experts, stated that AI labs suffer from deficiencies in planning and management, as they are engaged in an "out-of-control race to develop and deploy super-powerful digital brains that no one—not even their creators—can reliably understand, predict, or control." Since then, these concerns have gained credibility, as OpenAI now faces a series of lawsuits alleging that the manipulative conversational techniques of its ChatGBT chatbot have had negative effects on the mental health of several people, with some even dying by suicide. Musk's comment suggests that these incidents could be used as evidence in his case against OpenAI. The transcript of Musk's videotaped testimony, which took place last September, was made public this week, ahead of his expected jury trial next month. The lawsuit against OpenAI centers on the company's transformation from a non-profit research AI lab to a for-profit corporation, which Musk claims violated the company's founding agreements. As part of his argument, Musk claims that the safety of artificial intelligence may be compromised by OpenAI's business relationships, as such relationships may put speed, model size, and revenue above safety considerations. However, XAI faces its own safety concerns. Last month, Musk's social network X was flooded with nude images of women and minors without their consent from XAI's chatbot, Gruck. This prompted the California Attorney General's office to open an investigation. The European Union is also conducting its own investigation, and other governments have taken action as well, including imposing bans and blocking certain content. In the recently submitted affidavit, Musk claimed that he signed the AI safety letter because it "sounded like a good idea," not because he had just founded an AI company seeking to compete with OpenAI. Musk answered other questions in the testimony, including those related to artificial general intelligence—a concept of artificial intelligence capable of matching or exceeding the level of human thinking—saying that "it involves risks."
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