\nElon Musk wants to develop TruthGPT, \u2018a maximum truth-seeking AI\u2019<\/br>
\n2023-04-18 22:12:29<\/br><\/p>\n
![](\"https:\/\/i0.wp.com\/techcrunch.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/10\/GettyImages-1242798333.jpg?w=1140&ssl=1\")
\n\t\t<\/div>\n<\/p><\/div>\nOn Tuesday, Elon Musk said in an interview with Fox News\u2019 Tucker Carlson<\/a> that he wants to develop his own chatbot called TruthGPT, which will be \u201ca maximum truth-seeking AI\u201d \u2014 whatever that means.<\/p>\n The Twitter owner said that he wants to create a third option to OpenAI and Google with an aim to \u201ccreate more good than harm.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cI\u2019m going to start something which you call TruthGPT or a maximum truth-seeking AI that tries to understand the nature of the universe. And I think this might be the best path to safety in the sense that an AI that cares about understanding the universe is unlikely to annihilate humans because we are an interesting part of the universe,\u201d Musk said during the Fox & Friends show.<\/p>\n Musk was also critical of OpenAI saying that he played a pivotal role in setting up the organization, but it\u2019s not clear if it is doing any good. He also accused OpenAI of training AI models to be politically correct, which he considers \u201canother way being untruthful.\u201d<\/p>\n He previously criticized the company for becoming \u201cclosed sourced\u201d and \u201ceffectively controlled by Microsoft\u201d in a tweet in February.<\/p>\n OpenAI was created as an open source (which is why I named it \u201cOpen\u201d AI), non-profit company to serve as a counterweight to Google, but now it has become a closed source, maximum-profit company effectively controlled by Microsoft.<\/p>\n Not what I intended at all.<\/p>\n \u2014 Elon Musk (@elonmusk) February 17, 2023<\/a><\/p>\n<\/blockquote>\n<\/div>\n In March, Semafor reported<\/a> that Musk and OpenAI co-founder Sam Altman had a tiff in 2018. When Musk wanted to take control of the company because it had \u201cfallen fatally behind Google,\u201d Altman and other co-founders objected to the move resulting in the Tesla CEO walking away.<\/p>\n Musk also showed concerns about AI being too powerful to manipulate public opinion or even cause \u201ccivilizational destruction.\u201d This is not the first time<\/a> the SpaceX CEO has talked about the dangers of AI. Most recently, he signed a letter to pause the training of models more powerful than GPT-4<\/a> for at least six months along with people like Steve Wozniak, and Tristan Harris of the Center for Humane Technology.<\/p>\n Earlier this week, the Financial Times reported that Musk has been working on an OpenAI rival<\/a> \u2014 he has recruited former DeepMind employee Igor Babuschkin for this task.<\/p>\n It\u2019s not clear if Musk wants to build a Large Language Model (LLM) that rivals the offerings from OpenAI and Google, or if he wants to push for research in other areas of AI like fairness in training models.<\/p>\n But as TechCrunch\u2019s Devin Coldewey noted in his story<\/a> earlier this week, Musk doesn\u2019t need to develop a cutting-edge product to make ripples. \u201cOne does not have to topple the market leader to influence events and gain a seat at the table \u2014 often all it takes is billions of dollars. And that is something Musk reliably seems to have at his disposal,\u201d Devin wrote.<\/p>\n It\u2019s also worth noting that TruthGPT might be a temporary project name, as OpenAI has applied for a trademark<\/a> for the term \u201cGPT.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n <\/br><\/br><\/br><\/p>\n\n