The drama continues. Meta chief AI scientist Yann LeCun is clearly disappointed in Elon Musk and has voiced substantial criticism of his approach to technology development, media, and political discourse on every possible social media platform, including Threads.
LeCun lauded Musk’s innovation, and said “I like his cars, his rockets, his solar energy systems, and his satellite communication system. I also like his positions on open source and patents.”
However, LeCun’s admiration for Musk’s technological achievements is tempered by significant disagreements on other fronts.
LeCun expressed alarm at Musk’s promotion of ‘batsh*t-crazy’ conspiracy theories, citing examples such as “boosting ‘PizzaGate'” and false claims about illegal immigrants corrupting elections. “One would expect a technological visionary to be a rationalist. Rationalism doesn’t work without Truth,” LeCun said.
Further, he expressed concern about Musk’s treatment of scientists and the impact of secrecy on research progress. “Technology/product development may not need openness and publications to advance, but forward-looking research sure does,” he said.
He added that secrecy hampers progress and discourages talent from joining efforts in areas like AI, neural interfaces, and material science.
He also criticised Musk’s habit of making grandiose, often unrealistic predictions. “Expressing an ambitious vision for the future is great. But telling the public blatantly false predictions (‘AGI next year’, ‘1 million robotaxis by 2020’, ‘AGI will kill us all, let’s pause’) is very counterproductive and illegal in some cases,” LeCun asserted.
LeCun’s critique extends to Musk’s public stances on political issues, journalism, and academia. He argued that Musk’s positions are “not just wrong but dangerous for democracy, civilisation, and human welfare.”
Highlighting the importance of a free and diverse press, LeCun said, “Democracy can’t exist without professional journalists working for a free and diverse press. Only authoritarian enemies of democracy rail against the media.”
LeCun is particularly concerned about Musk’s acquisition of a social media platform, using it to spread what LeCun sees as dangerous political opinions and conspiracy theories.
He criticised Musk’s approach to content moderation, stressing the legal and ethical necessity of regulating certain types of content. “Content moderation is a complicated problem whose best answer is not an attitude of total laissez-faire but a complex trade-off,” LeCun concluded.
LeCun has been engaged in heated discussions with Musk on X over the past few days, debating topics ranging from AGI to the critical role of research scientists in the development of technology companies and products.
Meanwhile, Musk, being Musk, is surely fun with the recent banter with LeCun.
”Who are you again? I keep forgetting,” taunted Musk. To this, LeCun said: “You know, the guy with a good Twitter game.”
If this drama continues or takes a serious turn, LeCun might find himself banned from X soon.
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