Tesla CEO Elon Musk revealed his confidence in Tesla's advancements in artificial intelligence, stating that the company will soon have its 'ChatGPT moment.' Musk expressed that Tesla's AI capabilities surpass those of other prominent players in the field, including Google's Waymo.
During an interaction with CNBC's David Faber on Twitter Spaces, Musk was asked about Tesla's AI efforts and how they differ from initiatives such as OpenAI and Alphabet. The billionaire said that Tesla possesses "tremendous capacity in real-world AI" and is far ahead of its competitors.
Musk addressed the perception that Tesla's AI capabilities are often overshadowed by discussions surrounding ChatGPT and generative AI. He acknowledged that people do discuss Tesla's AI online but recognized the need for greater recognition in mainstream conversations.
The Tesla CEO projected a significant breakthrough for the company, stating, "I think Tesla will have sort of a ChatGPT moment, maybe if not this year, I'd say no later than next year."
Musk clarified that this moment refers to an achievement where Tesla's vehicles would be able to drive themselves without human intervention. He envisioned a future where millions of Tesla cars would operate autonomously, gradually expanding to 3 million, 5 million, and eventually 10 million self-driving vehicles.
Comparing Tesla's self-driving capabilities to Google's Waymo, Musk argued that while Waymo has achieved limited success in a tightly mapped geographic area, Tesla has a more advanced and generalized solution. Musk contended that if the tasks were reversed with another major AI company like Microsoft, and Tesla was tasked with producing a large language model akin to ChatGPT, the company would emerge victorious.
Regarding the necessary computing power, Musk affirmed that Tesla possesses the required resources to achieve its self-driving goals, suggesting that the company is well-positioned to lead in both autonomous driving and AI.
During the interview, Musk also expressed his disappointment with OpenAI and its shift to the for-profit model. Microsoft has invested $10 billion in the AI startup and Musk claims that gives the software giant a lot of power over the leadership at OpenAI. He claims that Microsoft can cut off OpenAI at any instant if they'd like to.
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