Peterson asks Musk if he’ll fight Zuckerberg naked
While reposting an article about the Musk-Zuckerberg cage match, Jordan Peterson asks Musk on Twitter whether they will fight naked or clothed. Peterson has been tweeting about the match between Musk and Zuckerberg in recent days and now that he is asking this, he also suggests that there should “be oil involved.” The article headline mentions Musk challenging Zuckerberg to the match, to which Peterson replies:
Naked or clothed? @elonmusk
And there should definitely be oil involved 🙂
And there should definitely be oil involved 🙂
— Dr Jordan B Peterson (@jordanbpeterson) June 22, 2023
Andrew Tate to Musk: ‘I will train you’
Former professional kickboxer and light-heavyweight champion Andrew Tate offers to train Musk for his cage fight against Mark Zuckerberg, whom Tate calls “the enemy clans leader.”
I will train you @elonmusk. You will not lose.
Tate was banned from Meta’s platforms in 2022 and is currently on house arrest after being criminally charged with rape and human trafficking in Eastern Europe. Musk has not yet responded.
Meta banned me everywhere for telling the truth about vaccines.
But now we can restore honour with a strike at the enemy clans leader.
I will train you @elonmusk.
You will not lose.
— Andrew Tate (@Cobratate) June 22, 2023
Zuckerberg accepts Musk’s ‘cage fight’ challenge
In response to a conversation about Zuckerberg’s Meta launching a ‘sane’ version of Twitter, a Twitter user warns Musk that he should ‘be careful” because the Facebook CEO “does the ju jitsu now”. Musk responds:
I’m up for a cage match if he is lol
I’m sure Earth can’t wait to be exclusively under Zuck’s thumb with no other options.
At least it will be “sane”. Was worried there for a moment 😅.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2023
I’m up for a cage match if he is lol
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2023
Zuckerberg replies on his verified Instagram account:
Send me location
Musk responds that the match should be in Vegas Octagon, while also mocking his lack of athletic skills.
Vegas Octagon. I have this great move that I call “The Walrus”, where I just lie on top of my opponent & do nothing
I have this great move that I call “The Walrus”, where I just lie on top of my opponent & do nothing
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 22, 2023
Zuckerberg is an aspirational MMA fighter who is already winning Jiu-Jitsu tournaments. He also claims to have recently completed the gruelling “Murph Challenge” workout in just under 40 minutes. Previously, Musk challenged Vladimir Putin to ‘single combat’.
Musk: Twitter ‘didn’t have a choice’ but to obey Indian government
In response to Dorsey’s claim that the Indian government asked him to block Twitter accounts covering the 2020-21 farmers’ protests, Musk says Twitter had no choice but to obey. The platform has to follow the laws formulated by governments, he says, or else they will shut it down. But, Musk adds that even though Twitter has to comply with regulations imposed by different governments, it will strive to ensure that users continue to have access to a platform with “the freest speech” possible.
Twitter didn’t have a choice, but to obey local government laws. We cannot apply America to Earth. There are different rules and regulations for different forms of governments, and we will do our best to provide the freest speech that is possible under the law.
Musk considers Cuban’s low-cost pharmacy for Tesla, SpaceX employees
After a Twitter user asks Cuban who costplusdrugs.com does not offer Invermectin, which the user says “costs $0.02 per pill in Africa, 100x mark-up in America”, Musk responds:
Good question
A few hours later, Cuban responds to Musk:
I’m sorry I didn’t see you enter the discussion @elonmusk. The price we were able to get was much higher than other available sources. We are trying to get a better price. We do sell HCQ. Our mission is to be the low cost provider of every med we are allowed to sell. You should have your employees use us. It will save them and @twitter a fuck ton of money. Costplusdrugs.com
Ok, I will ask Tesla & SpaceX to inquire further
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 19, 2023
Musk replies that he will ask Tesla & SpaceX to inquire into Cuban’s offer. In 2022, Tesla employed more than 127,000 people, while SpaceX has about 10,000 employees
Musk meets Modi, hints at Tesla expansion
On a two-day visit to New York, Indian Prime Minister Modi meets with Musk. Musk:
[It was an] excellent and a very good conversation. I am confident Tesla will be in India and will do so as soon as humanly possible, Hopefully we’ll be able to announce something in the not-too-distant future….I am a fan of Modi. I like him quite a lot.
Musk, who said he hopes to visit India in 2023, said Modi is pushing Tesla to make “significant investments in India,” and that’s “something we intend to do.” He also added that he hopes to bring Starlink to remote and rural areas of India.
I am incredibly excited about the future of India
I am a fan of Modi – @elonmusk says after meeting PM @narendramodi pic.twitter.com/A9TLwotV9Y— 🦏 Payal M/પાયલ મેહતા/ पायल मेहता/ পাযেল মেহতা (@payalmehta100) June 20, 2023
Musk: ‘cis’ or ‘cisgender’ considered ‘slurs’ on Twitter
Replying to a user who claimed to have been targeted by pro-trans activists, Musk says the words ‘cis’ or ‘cisgender’ – which are used by transgender activists to label people who are not transgender – are now ‘considered slurs’ on Twitter. He considers their repeated use against others “targeted harassment” (though users may call themselves “anything” they want) and warns that people who use them that way will face account suspensions “at minimum.” Commenting on a poll in which the majority of respondents said they consider “cis” a slur, Musk also says that “people overwhelmingly reject” the term.
Repeated, targeted harassment against any account will cause the harassing accounts to receive, at minimum, temporary suspensions.
The words “cis” or “cisgender” are considered slurs on this platform.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 21, 2023
Musk suspends ExplainThisBob
Musk suspends a meme Twitter account linked to the cryptocurrency Bob Token, saying it could be a “scam crypto account.” Some Twitter users who hold Bob Token (BOB) and those utilizing the @explainthisbob reply bot voice their opposition to the suspension, and some in the crypto community who disagree with Musk’s decision created a hashtag “FREEBOB,” demanding a reconsideration of the suspension. BOB’s value is down by 30% following the suspension. Musk:
This sure looks like a scam crypto account. If so, it will be suspended.
This sure looks like a scam crypto account. If so, it will be suspended.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2023
Musk: Biden’s tax plans will ‘upset a lot of donors’
A little over an hour after President Biden tweets:
It’s about time the super-wealthy start paying their fair share.
Musk responds:
I agree that we should make elaborate tax-avoidance schemes illegal, but acting upon that would upset a lot of donors, so we will see words, but no action. Those who will actually be forced to carry the burden of excess government spending are lower to middle income wage earners, as they cannot escape payroll tax.
In all seriousness, I agree that we should make elaborate tax-avoidance schemes illegal, but acting upon that would upset a lot of donors, so we will see words, but no action.
Those who will actually be forced to carry the burden of excess government spending are lower to…
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 18, 2023
Musk: Tesla’s market cap directly tied to solving autonomous driving
At Paris’ VivaTech innovation conference, Musk says Tesla’s market capitalization is directly tied to whether it can solve autonomous driving. French businessman Antoine Arnault ribs Musk about Tesla’s $827 billion market cap, noting it dwarfs LVMH’s valuation. Musk says he has little insight into stock price movements and suggests that Tesla’s market cap is tied to whether the company is able to perfect autonomous driving technology (he has been saying for several years that Tesla is close to solving autonomous driving, but the company’s cars still only provide advanced driver assistance features).
Valuations are a strange thing. Sometimes I’ve said, ‘Hey, I think the stock price is too high at Tesla,’ and then the stock price goes up. I’m like, ‘okay.’…Really the value of the company is primarily on the basis of autonomy. If you look at our total vehicle output, it’s almost two million vehicles this year or something like that. But that’s still only 2% of total vehicle production. The potential for autonomy is that the value of autonomy is so high, that even if you have a discount, a percentage probability of autonomy happening, that is so incredibly valuable.
He also repeats the idea of Tesla owners turning their vehicles into a fleet of self-driving robotaxis, which he once said would be implemented by 2020.
Musk hires 14-year-old to work for SpaceX
Musk hires a 14-year-old to work as a software engineer at SpaceX. Having been described as a genius and a “wonder kid” for his academic achievements, Kairan Quazi’s IQ tests suggest he is in the 99.9th percentile of the general population. He already completed an internship at Intel, and after he graduates from Santa Clara University (where he is set to receive a Bachelor’s degree in Mathematics and Computer Science and Engineering), he will work on SpaceX’s Starlink team, which is building the world’s largest satellite internet network. On LinkedIn, Quazi wrote:
I will be joining the coolest company on the planet as a software engineer on the Starlink engineering team. One of the rare companies that did not use my age as an arbitrary and outdated proxy for maturity and ability.
His LinkedIn profile has since been removed, because the platform requires users to be at least 16 years old. On Instagram, Quazi posted that his removal from LinkedIn was “illogical, primitive nonsense” that amounted to discrimination.
I can be qualified enough to land one of the most coveted engineering jobs in the world but not qualified enough to have access to a professional social media platform? LinkedIn showing everyone how regressive some tech company policies are.
LinkedIn spokesperson:
We appreciate his enthusiasm to join LinkedIn and applaud his incredible success, however we have an age limit in place of 16 years of age and that extends to all members.
Musk talks birth rates, AI with Italian PM Meloni
Musk flies from Texas to Rome to meet with Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni. Among other things, they discuss birth rates and the risks of artificial intelligence. After leaving Italy, he will speak at the Viva Tech conference in Paris and is expected to meet with Macron. Meloni tweets that she and Musk discussed:
…innovation, opportunities and risks of artificial intelligence, European market regulations, and birth rates.
Ho accolto con grande piacere oggi a Palazzo Chigi @elonmusk. Un incontro molto proficuo e un momento di grande cordialità dove abbiamo affrontato alcuni temi cruciali: innovazione, opportunità e rischi dell'intelligenza artificiale, regole europee di mercato e natalità. Avanti… pic.twitter.com/MOQlirj7XC
— Giorgia Meloni (@GiorgiaMeloni) June 15, 2023
Music publishers sue Twitter for $250m, citing Musk’s lax copyright stance
The National Music Publishers’ Association sues Twitter, on behalf of firms including Sony Music Publishing, BMG Rights Management and Universal Music Publishing Group, in a US federal court in Tennessee, for more than $250m over bulk copyright infringement, citing Elon Musk’s tweets to argue that the company has deliberately stopped enforcing the rules. The suit says Twitter has not paid for a blanket licence allowing its users to upload copyrighted material, unlike TikTok, Facebook, Instagram, YouTube and Snapchat. in 2023, The New York Times reported that talks had stalled over the $100m price tag and fallen apart since Musk bought the site. The suit names 17000 songs as having been infringed:
Twitter’s policies demonstrate that Twitter views itself, not the law, as the arbiter of what content is permitted on the Twitter platform. Despite claiming to take down tweets in response to an infringement notice within hours or minutes, Twitter routinely waits much longer before acting, if it acts at all. There are thousands of instances where Twitter waited 30 days or more to remove or disable access to the content identified.
According to the suit, Musk said copyright “goes absurdly far beyond protecting the original creator” and “overzealous” application of copyright laws “is a plague on humanity”. The plaintiffs:
This statement and others like it exert pressure on Twitter employees, including those in its trust and safety team, on issues relating to copyright and infringement
Musk to talk Tesla Gigafactory with Macron again
For the second time in just over a month, Musk will meet with Macron to discuss building a Tesla Gigafactory in France. France has been courting Tesla to build factories in the country, but is competing with other EU countries like Spain, which is also in talks with Tesla. Macron:
I’m going (into that meeting) with an agenda. We’re going to talk about artificial intelligence, in which he is involved, social media, regulation framework… And then I’ll also talk to him about cars, batteries, to promote French and European attractiveness.
Asked specifically whether he was hoping to secure a Tesla Gigafactory, Macron says: “It’s up to the company to look at these different issues in Europe. So we’ll be selling France” as an investment destination. In addition to saying that France has invested in an “entire sector of electric batteries” and will try to convince Musk “that France is the best possible place in Europe to establish the next Tesla factory,” French minister for digital affairs Jean-Noel Barrot says:
It will be great to have a Tesla factory in France. There has been a lot of effort and energy to make sure this is possible and this can happen.
Musk and Macron will also discuss tech regulation.
Musk: ‘Battery supply constraints’ delaying Tesla Semi production
Speaking at an energy conference in Texas, Musk says Tesla does not expect to start higher-volume production of the Semi Class 8 electric semi-truck before late 2024. He cites battery supply constraints as the reason. Musk did not explain exactly what “higher-volume production” means for the Semi, a niche Tesla product built at Gigafactory Nevada that Musk considers essential for accelerating the company’s transition to more sustainable energy.
200th Falcon 9 booster landing
In a rideshare mission called Transporter-8, SpaceX launches a Falcon 9 rocket containing 72 small satellites from California’s Vandenberg Space Force Base to orbit and lands the returning booster, eight minutes later, back on Earth, marking the 200th booster landing in SpaceX’s history. This is the ninth launch and landing for this particular booster. The rocket’s upper stage continued hauling aloft the 72 payloads, which included “cubesats, microsats, a re-entry capsule and orbital transfer vehicles carrying spacecraft to be deployed at a later time.” The satellites deployed from the Falcon 9’s upper stage, separate over a 24-minute span, beginning an hour after liftoff. Transporter-8 was SpaceX’s second mission in about 14 hours, the eighth small-satellite “rideshare” mission launched by SpaceX, and its third such flight of 2023.
After delivering 72 spacecraft to orbit, Falcon 9 returns to Earth and completes SpaceX’s 200th landing of an orbital class rocket pic.twitter.com/7Aw52C97jk
— SpaceX (@SpaceX) June 13, 2023
Yaccarino sends first memo to Twitter employees
Yaccarino sends her first communication to Twitter employees. In a 320-word memo, she writes that Twitter is “on a mission” to become a “global town square for communication” and says that the “success of Twitter 2.0 is all of our responsibility.” She also mentions thinking “big,” starting from “first principles,” and “building something new from the ground up.”
From space exploration to electric vehicles, Elon knew these industries needed transformation, so he did it. More recently it has become increasingly clear that the global town square needs transformation — to drive civilization forward through the unfiltered exchange of information and open dialogue about the things that matter most to us.
Hello Twitter.
People keep asking me: Why Twitter?
So, I’ll tell you. 👇— Linda Yaccarino (@lindayacc) June 12, 2023
Musk: Unabomber ‘might not be wrong’
In response to a tweet quoting the “Unabomber” Ted Kaczynski, Musk says that he may not have been wrong in what he said. (Kaczynski was an opponent of modern technology who created homemade bombs that caused 16 explosions, killing three people and injuring 23 others between the years 1978 and 1995.) Kaczynski wrote:
The Industrial Revolution and its consequences have been a disaster for the human race.
Musk:
He might not be wrong
He might not be wrong
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2023
Report: Autopilot involved in 17 fatalities, 736 crashes
According to NHTSA reports, Tesla’s Autopilot self-driving software was involved in 17 fatalities and 736 crashes. NHTSA began collecting the data after a federal order in 2021 required automakers to disclose crashes involving driver-assistance technology. NHTSA says a report of a crash involving driver-assistance does not itself imply that the technology was the cause. It is also unclear if the NHTSA’s data covers every driver assisted crash. Of the 17 fatal crashes, four involved motorcycles. NHTSA has received more than a dozen reports of Teslas running into parked emergency vehicles while in Autopilot
The increase in crashes coincides with Tesla’s rollout of Full Self-Driving, which has expanded from around 12,000 users to nearly 400,000 in just over a year. Nearly two-thirds of all driver-assistance crashes that Tesla has reported to NHTSA occurred in the past year. Tesla clams that, when comparing miles driven per collision, Full Self-Driving crashes at a rate at least five times lower than vehicles in normal driving. However, this figure is uncorroborated by external agencies. NHTSA:
NHTSA has an active investigation into Tesla Autopilot, including Full-Self Driving. NHTSA reminds the public that all advanced driver assistance systems require the human driver to be in control and fully engaged in the driving task at all times. Accordingly, all state laws hold the human driver responsible for the operation of their vehicles.
Musk laughs at Bill Miller’s Tesla short fail
Musk tweets a laughing emoji at the legendary investor Bill Miller for shorting Tesla stock when it was less than half its current value. In a CNBC interview, Miller said that he was betting against Tesla because of increased industry competition. At that time, the company’s market value was around $357 billion, but now it stands at $774.6 billion – a 116% increase. Its stock price was at $244.40 as of last market close. The increase was fueled partly by investor hopes that the Federal Reserve would ease its interest-rate-hike campaign, along with a pickup in demand for Tesla vehicles because of price cuts in China and the US. Miller:
I shorted it recently. I shorted more today. If it goes up, I’ll short more. Tesla is now losing market share. They’re cutting price. BYD is introducing a luxury version over in China. It’s a phenomenal company, but it’s not worth $380 billion, in my opinion. I just don’t think it’s worth more than the top five automakers in the world combined. And all of them are coming with electric vehicles.
🤣
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) June 10, 2023