Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu spoke with Tesla CEO Elon Musk in an X Space conversation on Monday evening, welcoming the CEO’s stance against antisemitism amid controversy surrounding widespread antisemitism on Musk’s X (formerly Twitter) platform.
The conversation took place shortly after Netanyahu landed in the US. The two discussed a number of issues, such as the risks and benefits of artificial intelligence (AI) and X’s (formerly Twitter) policies concerning antisemitism.
LIVE: Speaking with @elonmusk about how we can harness the opportunities and mitigate the risks of AI for the good of civilization. https://t.co/XiAQwOXzcP
— Benjamin Netanyahu – בנימין נתניהו (@netanyahu) September 18, 2023
Netanyahu expressed admiration for what he said was Musk’s position against antisemitism, stating “I hope you find within the confines of the First Amendment a way to combat antisemitism. I know you’re committed to it. I think it’s important to condemn. The issue of condemnation is separate from the issue of access.”
Musk responded “Obviously I’m against antisemitism. Free speech does mean at times someone is saying something you don’t like. That doesn’t mean negativity should be pushed on people. Our overarching goal is to maximize unregretted user time. We can’t police [antisemitism] ahead of time. We’re not going to promote hate speech.”
Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu meets with Tesla CEO Elon Musk. September 18, 2023 (Credit: GPO)
Netanyahu says he’s looking for ‘happy middle’ in judicial reform
Musk stated that he had received criticism for doing the conversation with Netanyahu due to the judicial reform.
The prime minister claimed that many of the protesters against the reform “don’t know what they’re protesting about and there’s a concerted effort to make sure they don’t know.”
Netanyahu referenced the story of Socrates trial and Plato’s idea of a philosopher king system in which “enlightened people” rule instead of a democracy, comparing the philosopher king idea to the judiciary in Israel.
Netanyahu additionally claimed that the judicial system in Israel gave itself power over all the other branches of government and has no checks or balances. The prime minister additionally claimed that he rejected the override clause proposed by members of his government, adding that he was “looking for the happy middle.”
“I want this to be a consensus,” said Netanyahu, adding that he wants to “restore the balance the three branches of government had in its first years.”
The prime minister added he would be focusing on the judicial reform as soon as he returns to Israel.
Netanyahu says deterrence needed to control AI use
The two also spoke about the risks and benefits of AI.
“We stand today at a juncture for all humanity where we have to choose between a blessing and a curse,” said Netanyahu. “The blessings of AI are amazing, we see them already in Israel…At the same time, we have the curse. It could be manifold, it could be the destruction of democracy, the manipulation of minds, crime syndicates, AI-driven wars, even the stuff of science fiction. That machines will control humans instead of the other way around. We want to increase the blessings, not just for ourselves, but for all humanity. What do we do internationally, globally, to contain the threat?”
Netanyahu added that there are “three layers” of concern surrounding AI: the powers and superpowers that cooperate with each other, the regimes outside of those governments, and “bad actors” such as runaway corporations and rogue states.
“I look at nuclear weapons. How did we control nuclear weapons? Treaties didn’t do it. Deterrence did, mutually assured destruction. If we don’t have a code of conduct between the powers, we’ll have mutually assured chaos.”
Musk stressed that AI requires giant server centers which are very hard to obtain or conceal.
Comments are closed.