Summarized by AI Model:facebook/bart-large-cnn
Hoffman says Musk's advisory role with Donald Trump may provide a conflict of interest if the founder of xAI is advising the president-elect on artificial intelligence legislation. Musk criticised LinkedIn users in a response to an X post that had nothing to do with Hoffman's writing, just hours after the FT published the opinion piece.Hoffman stated in a Friday op-ed in The Financial Times that Musk’s advisory role with Donald Trump may provide a conflict of interest if the founder of xAI is advising the president-elect on artificial intelligence legislation.
“With direct ownership in the fledgling AI start-up xAI, Elon Musk, who is advising Trump in many domains, has a serious conflict of interest in terms of setting federal AI policies for all US companies,” said Hoffman. “Using his position to favour xAI in any way, such as awarding it government contracts, encouraging federal agencies to unfairly target AI companies, or imposing new regulations that limit exports will come at the expense of US technological, economic and cultural security and competitiveness.”
A request for response from Musk was not answered. Musk criticised LinkedIn users in a response to an X post that had nothing to do with Hoffman’s writing, just hours after the FT published the opinion piece. “I instantly lose respect for anyone who posts on LinkedIn,” he stated. “Unbearably cringe.”
In the FT op-ed, Hoffman—who is also the cofounder of Inflection AI—expressed his expectations and worries about Trump’s second term.
Hoffman said he was optimistic that Trump could expand on the “strong Democrat-engineered economy” that the Biden Administration had left behind by bringing in further corporate investments and technology advancements related to artificial intelligence. However, he also cautioned that a Trump White House would hinder innovation by refusing to collaborate with US friends abroad to advance technologies like artificial intelligence.
“While Trump campaigned on the promise of making America more unilateral and insular, I continue to believe a pluralistic, multilateral approach is what creates innovation and prosperity in an increasingly networked world,” said Hoffman. “AI is included in that. On the other hand, I anticipate that the administration will implement a mercantilist AI policy that will prevent long-standing international partners from utilising US technology, infrastructure, and models. A request for response from a member of Trump’s transition team was not answered.
Since 2000, when Musk’s online banking business, X.com, combined with security software company Confinity to form PayPal, Hoffman and Musk have been engaged in a sour rivalry. Recently, the rivalry between the two CEOs has been increasingly widely discussed, especially in relation to political disagreements. Musk has been an outspoken backer of Trump and has steadily switched to the Republican Party over the years. Hoffman backed the candidacy of Vice President Kamala Harris. Musk has already spent a significant amount of time in Trump’s orbit since his election on November 5th, when he was appointed head of a new Department of Government Efficiency whose goal is to shrink the federal government.
