OpenAI CEO Believes Musk Will Not Abuse Government Power

During Wednesday's DealBook conference hosted by The New York Times, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman stated that he is not worried about Elon Musk possibly leveraging his close relationship with Donald Trump to harm business rivals. He characterized such behavior as "highly unaligned with American values."

Addressing concerns about Musk potentially leading a new government efficiency department under the Trump administration, Altman remarked, "I might be proven wrong, but I firmly believe that Elon will do the right thing. Using political power to harm competitors and benefit his own businesses goes against America's core values." He further emphasized that even if certain unsettling factors exist, such actions would significantly contradict the values Musk holds dear, thus alleviating his concerns.

Musk, a co-founder of OpenAI, later departed from the company and is currently suing Altman's firm and Microsoft, alleging that they have deviated from the project's original nonprofit mission. However, in an interview, Altman expressed "deep regret" over the lawsuit and had previously regarded Musk as a "superhero."

During the campaign, Musk maintained a close relationship with Trump and strongly supported his presidential bid. Since Trump's election victory, Musk has frequently appeared in Trump's transition team, and his new position has raised concerns about potential conflicts of interest. Musk's companies have significant ties with the governments of the United States and other nations, making his new role even more noteworthy.

In the interview, Altman also discussed OpenAI's long-term technical objective of achieving Artificial General Intelligence (AGI). He noted that while the realization of AGI might occur sooner than most anticipate, its significance could be less than expected. "Many of the safety concerns that we and others have expressed may not materialize at the AGI stage. AGI can be developed, and the world will essentially continue to operate normally," he stated.