Elon Musk uses a South-Indian movie poster to relate it to Apple & OpenAI Merger

Elon Musk, the CEO of Tesla, has expressed strong disapproval of Apple’s recent partnership with OpenAI, denouncing it as a significant security risk.

Elon Musk took to Twitter to voice his concerns, even sharing a meme from a Tamil movie to illustrate his point. The meme, taken from the 2017 Tamil film ‘Thappattam,’ depicts a man and woman sharing coconut water, symbolizing how the collaboration between Apple and OpenAI could potentially compromise individual privacy by invading personal data. Elon Musk criticized Apple for not developing its own AI software and instead relying on OpenAI. He tweeted, “It’s patently absurd that Apple isn’t smart enough to make their own AI, yet is somehow capable of ensuring that OpenAI will protect your security & privacy! Apple has no clue what’s actually going on once they hand your data over to OpenAI. They’re selling you down the river.” Elon Musk further threatened to ban Apple products from his companies if Apple integrated OpenAI at the operating system level. “If Apple integrates OpenAI at the OS level, then Apple devices will be banned at my company. That is an unacceptable security violation,” he mentioned. He also mentioned that visitors to his companies would need to check their Apple devices at the door, where they would be stored in a Faraday cage to prevent any potential data breaches.

Elon Musk’s criticism was fueled by Apple’s announcement at the World Wide Developer Conference (WWDC) about integrating GPT-4 within Siri. Apple introduced ‘Apple Intelligence,’ which includes numerous on-device AI capabilities aimed at enhancing user experience. However, Elon Musk’s primary concern is that integrating OpenAI’s technology at a deep level within Apple’s operating systems could lead to significant privacy issues, as it involves handing over user data to OpenAI. Elon Musk’s public condemnation of the Apple-OpenAI partnership reflects his broader concerns about data security and privacy in the era of advanced artificial intelligence. He has been vocal about the potential risks of AI and has often advocated for stringent regulations and ethical considerations in AI development and deployment. His tweets and threats to ban Apple products from his companies highlight his commitment to safeguarding data privacy and security, even if it means challenging major tech players like Apple. The controversy underscores the growing tensions in the tech industry over AI integration and data privacy. As companies like Apple push forward with AI innovations, concerns about how these technologies handle personal data and the potential risks they pose to privacy remain at the forefront of discussions. Elon Musk’s outspoken stance on the issue serves as a reminder of the need for ongoing scrutiny and debate around the ethical implications of AI technology.