Elon Musk Discusses AI Advancements and Body Double Rumours: What's the connection?

By: Eva Baxter

In a recent AI safety summit hosted by the UK government, Tesla CEO Elon Musk made warnings about the exponential advancement in Artificial Intelligence, his fears about AI surpassing humans and ways to regulate the technology. His conversation with UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak revolved around potential risks, regulation, and the societal effects of AI. One potential risk Musk pointed at was the technology's ability to generate convincingly fake videos, casting an eerie shadow over the rumours of Russian President Vladimir Putin using AI-enhanced body doubles. The rumours were recently revived by a Japanese news segment, stoking concerns over deepfake technology misuse.

In the same vein, former California governor and actor Arnold Schwarzenegger recently was part of a gym stunt, which involved faking AI advice to gym-goers. While the incident was harmless and jovial in nature, it further demonstrates the potential of AI in impersonating individuals and highlights the importance of Musk's concerns over regulation.

As AI becomes increasingly prevalent, Musk stressed the importance of transparency and oversight to ensure safety, even if firm regulations are not present initially. Governments globally are recognising the urgency to tackle such risks, as seen in the UK's efforts to build safety testing capabilities, especially with elections approaching worldwide. Against all odds, Musk remains optimistic about AI's potential to improve human lives, provided thoughtful safeguards are in place.