Elon Musk | Winner of the Axel Springer Award 2020
Questions on ElonsFAQ asked in this interview (4)
Transcript
0:07Announcerthis is your captain speaking. Welcome aboard our vessel to Mars. Boarding is completed as all systems are set and we're sure that we don't take the coronavirus to outer space.
0:19AnnouncerThanks for your cooperation. By the way. We are ready to launch. First rule, don't panic.
0:26NarratorCabin crew, prepare for takeoff.
0:55Announcer20 seconds till liftoff. Minus 15 seconds. 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1. Zero.
1:15Elon MuskIgnition.
1:52AnnouncerThis is your captain with an update from the cockpit. We arrived in Earth's orbit safe and sound. Let me please especially welcome one very special passenger. An extraordinary visionary, A multi talented engineer, a super smart entrepreneur, and not at least the man who made this mission to Mars possible.
2:12AnnouncerPlease give a very Warm welcome to Mr. Elon Musk.
2:26AnnouncerPlease take a look at our wonderful planet. Isn't it gorgeous? As curious as I am to see Mars, I am really, really looking forward to come back to our old homestead.
2:56NarratorSouth Africa in the 70s. A boy from Pretoria facing childhood problems. He reads 10 hours a day. Star wars and science fiction. But this one's got talent for machines and for money.
3:20NarratorGame begin at the age of 12, he programmed his first computer game on the good old Commodore. Young Elon sold black for $500. Develop stuff, let it grow, sell it soon.
3:38NarratorThis is how he made his fortune. And his opportunity to go even further. This is the way. One sentence he never wanted to hear. You're in the army now.
3:52NarratorSo he got himself a passport, moved to Canada, leaving the South African apartheid regime behind. He was 16 years. After some time in Kingston, he left Canada, went to Pennsylvania, got his bachelor and then moved south.
4:12NarratorAh, Stanford University, Palo Alto. Where all the silicon dreams were about to come true. Elon was one of those who founded the legend of the Valley. With $2,000, a car and a computer and nothing more, he and his Brother Kimball founded Zip2 that provided and licensed online city guide software to newspapers.
4:40NarratorFour years later, he sold it to Compaq for $307 million. Quite a story, but just the start. A typical story of those times. Develop and invest, find allies. Merge.
4:58NarratorDisrupt. The rise of PayPal. His first vision of making things easier for people using the digit. Elon Musk helped to change the financial industry forever. PayPal was sold for $1.5 billion to eBay.
5:17NarratorElon held 11.7% of the shares. A big winner in the big game. Money that he uses to make the world a better place. He attacks on the world's best settled market.
5:32NarratorThe automotive industry.
5:34Elon MuskWe created Tesla to make a difference in the world.
5:37NarratorTesl disruption at its best, not everything worked out perfect, but his long breath proved him right. He is pushing all his competitors forward. He is expanding. He leads technology, he leads infrastructure and logistics.
6:00NarratorAnd if necessary, he works and sleeps at the factory. And he is ein Berliner. Soon, very soon, we've decided to put
6:13Elon Muskthe Tesla Gigafactory Europe in the Berlin area.
6:19AnnouncerYeah, that's the news.
6:23NarratorAnd Tesla is just on the cutting edge of an idea. Autonomous driving is born.
6:30Elon MuskSo for us, being a little startup, we had to start it for the car that was in low production and necessarily expensive. Their idea of an electric car is something that doesn't look good, isn't fast, doesn't have high performance.
6:43Elon MuskWe wanted to break the mold of all of that. That's what we sought to achieve.
6:47NarratorSaving time for important things. Saving time for stuff that is fun. Well, it is fun to drive a Tesla, but on an endless motorway, even riding gets tiring. It's human, we're bored.
7:04NarratorVery soon. Let the car drive and get some food for the brain while it does the work. And last, but not fuel it with energy that is not harmful to the planet.
7:20NarratorElon embraces his responsibility. But this is never enough. Much more is needed. Elon can't stop thinking about the future of making things work better, more efficient. A visionary, a man who never gives up.
7:48NarratorAlthough there would have been a few moments when giving up would have been a more than plausible option. He reaches out for the stars, the real ones. The stars shining bright at night in the sky, you see them both light up.
8:09NarratorHe is a superstar, and still the kid who loves of sci fi. SpaceX is not only a business, it's not a hobby, it's a passion. Elon is CEO and its first spaceship designer.
8:27NarratorIt is all rocket science really. Many laughed at him. NASA with its billions, the Russians with their ruthless and dead serious ambitions.
8:38Elon MuskThe whole goal of SpaceX was through space exploration technology. And that's helping make humanity a space marine civilization.
8:47NarratorHe transported Americans to the iss.
8:52AnnouncerThree, two, one.
9:03NarratorPrivate economy is more effective and sustainable than state economy. Crew Dragon is a gentle slap in the face for over the top institutional rocketeers. The Russians took it personal.
9:18NarratorElon Musk must not be quoted by them. Too successful. Russia. Some things never change. Can one man change the world? Yeah, sure. Elon Musk did it and he doesn't stop there.
9:39Elon MuskAnd I think that's one of the things that, you know, makes people excited about the future. And we want the things that are in science fiction novels and movies not to be science fiction forever.
9:48Elon MuskWe want this to be real one day.
9:52NarratorWhat if one could help handicapped people by connecting the body with machines to reconnect neural disorders? Hey presto. Neuralink. What if we could get rid of traffic on our city streets, Dig a deep long tunnel beneath them and shoot the cars from one side of the town to the other?
10:16NarratorHey presto. The Boring Company. The name by the way, is one of the best puns ever. And stop. If we can do that with cars, why shouldn't we do it with goods and people in full speed, 600km in 35 minutes.
10:37NarratorJust do it. Hey presto. Hyperloop. But all that's earthbound reach for the stars and planets. We're already on our way to Mars.
11:05AnnouncerThis is your captain speaking. Well, rather gasping. What a trip that was. And it's not over yet. Let's hear it from the man himself. I kindly ask you now Elon, to come on stage and join Axelspringer CEO Matthias Dobfiner for a little chat.
11:29Elon MuskWell, that was fun.
11:31Mathias DöpfnerGlad that you enjoyed it.
11:33Elon MuskYeah, it's like a ride. I mean I think you could charge money for this. This is great. I mean, yeah, it really makes a difference to have these two screens and the angle change.
11:43Elon MuskIt's like that felt great, like Disney ride.
11:46Mathias DöpfnerElon, apart from this special trip to Mars this evening, when do you think realistically human beings will land on Mars for the first time?
11:57Elon MuskI think I feel fairly confident about six years from now. So every the Mars, Earth, Mars synchronization occurs roughly every 26 months. So we had one this year, this summer and so that means in roughly like about two years there'll be another one and then two years after that.
12:15Elon MuskSo I think, I'd say if you say six years from now, I think highly confident, if we get lucky, maybe four years and then we want to try to send an uncrewed vehicle there in two years.
12:29Mathias DöpfnerWhen will your first trip to orbit will take place?
12:34Elon MuskI don't know, possibly in two or three years. I'm mostly concerned with developing the technology that can enable a lot of people to go to Mars and make life multi planetary, have a base on the moon, a city on Mars.
12:51Elon MuskAnd I think it's important that we strive to have a self sustaining city on Mars as soon as possible. I mean, I'm optimistic about the future on Earth, but it's important to have life insurance for life as a whole.
13:04Mathias DöpfnerIs it going to be a business kind of tourism in orbit? Or is it more kind of plan B? If things on Earth do not Develop as well.
13:14Elon MuskIt's not exactly a plan B, it's more that I think, I think there's two aspects to this. One is that we want to have a future that is inspiring and exciting.
13:25Elon MuskAnd what are the things that you find inspiring and exciting about the future? I think one future where we are a space faring civilization and out there among the stars.
13:34Elon MuskI think that's every kid gets excited about that. You don't even need to teach them, they just get, it's like instinctive. And so it's very important for us to have reasons to like, reasons to be excited about life.
13:48Elon MuskLike when you wake up in the morning, it can't just be about problems. Okay. I know everyone in this room deals with a lot of tough problems but you know, it's got to be more than that.
13:59Elon MuskSo you know, I think a future where you can say hey, even if it's not you, there's going to be people out there that are going to be. We can have a base on the moon, we're going to have a, you know, a city on Mars, maybe go further.
14:12Elon MuskMoons of Jupiter and everything. I think that's a very exciting future. And then, and I think most people do.
14:19Mathias DöpfnerAnd you seriously want to be buried
14:21Elon Muskon Mars just not on impact?
14:28Elon MuskYes. I mean if you're going to listen, we're all going to die someday. So if you're going to die someday, I'm like okay, do you want to be buried on Mars?
14:37Elon MuskEarth? I'm like, mars sounds cool. Born on Earth, die on Mars. That's you know, if you've got the choice.
14:43Mathias DöpfnerTwo years ago in a conversation with Jack Ma and we spoke about Jeff Bezos plans with regards to orbit and he said well let's Jeff Bezos take care for the orbit, I take care for the Earth.
15:00Mathias DöpfnerYou seem to take care for both.
15:04Elon MuskYeah, basically Tesla is about trying to make sure things are good for the future on Earth. And then SpaceX is about good future beyond Earth basically. And so obviously we have to have sustainable energy, both consumption and production of energy.
15:23Elon MuskSo like Tesla does solar panels and batteries. I think that's one of the key ways to have sustainable energy generation. And also the batteries are useful for wind power.
15:32Elon MuskSo and then you need to consume it via consume electricity. So electric vehicles and you know, I think you look at these things like say okay, if you look back from the future and say what's the fundamental good of Tesla would say it's probably should be assessed as by how many, by how many years did Tesla accelerate The advent of sustainable energy, like that's like.
15:56Elon MuskI would measure the goodness of Tesla in that, in that way. And then for SpaceX it's like, okay, to what degree did we improve the probability of humanity being a space faring civilization?
16:08Mathias DöpfnerI remember very well the year 2014 when we were hosting the gold Steering wheel here at Oxford Springer and you got the award for lifetime achievement. And I was sitting in the first row with the then very successful and famous CEO of a very big German car company.
16:27Mathias DöpfnerAnd I asked him while you were on stage, isn't this guy dangerous for you? I mean this looks really serious that. Oh no, don't worry. First of all the whole idea of electric driving, it's never going to be a mass market.
16:38HostSecond, these guys that a lot, these
16:40Mathias Döpfnerguys in Silicon Valley, they have no clue about engineering, about building really beautiful and great cars. So we don't have to worry. By then Tesla's market cap was 23 billion.
16:52Mathias DöpfnerToday it's 536 billion US dollars. The market cap of VW then was 86 and today it's 77. And you could you, you are with Tesla two and a half times bigger than BMW, VW and Daimler.
17:11Elon MuskI even said it was ever too high. I mean what am I to supposed, you know, have you ever considered to buy stock is too high a long time.
17:17Elon MuskLike when it was like 100 $800 pre, pre split and they listen to me but you know, I tell you, and the SEC complained again. I mean like, you know,
17:31HostIs it
17:31Mathias Döpfnera serious option to buy one of the incumbents, one of the big car companies for you?
17:36Elon MuskWell, I think we're definitely not going to launch a hostile takeover. So I suppose if there was a Frankie one, if somebody said hey, we think it would be a good idea to merge with Tesla, we certainly have that conversation but you know, we don't want to, you know, be a hostile, hostile takeover sort of situation.
17:54Mathias DöpfnerDid you feel a lot of complacency these days that the incumbents then let you feel that you are, I mean the kind of hopeless disruptor but they know how to do it or where they're very polite and nice with you.
18:08Elon MuskDo you mean back then or not? Oh no, today everybody super nice? I would not say they were super. No, they were difficult to characterize their response as super nice.
18:22Elon MuskThey used a lot of adjectives. I don't think any of them were positive. We really tried hard, hard to convince a lot of companies. Honestly I was in so many panels but they generally were generally the sentiment that was expressed that you mentioned earlier.
18:45Elon MuskThat was pretty much universal, especially back in say 2008 or 2007, like when we first unveiled the Roadster in 2007. Yeah, I mean, it was just basically, they just said, well, you're basically a bunch of fools.
19:03Elon MuskWell, I mean, generally they say like, well, starting a car company is crazy. You're going to lose all your money. I was like, I think I probably will lose all my money.
19:11NarratorI agree.
19:13Elon MuskIt wasn't like I thought it would be successful. I thought we had maybe a 10% chance of success. So then people would say it's going to fail and you're going to lose everything.
19:21Elon MuskIt's like, yeah, probably true. Yeah. What else is new?
19:25Mathias DöpfnerA couple of years ago we saw each other in America and a guy asks you on a panel when autonomous driving will be approved. And you said, I do not care so much when it's going to be approved.
19:39Mathias DöpfnerI care more when human beings in cars will be forbidden. And then the guy said, unrealistic, it's never going to happen in cars. People want to do something actively.
19:52Mathias DöpfnerAnd then you said, well, 100 years ago nobody could imagine elevator without a lift buoy. Today nobody could imagine a lift with a lift buoy.
20:04Elon MuskYeah.
20:04Mathias DöpfnerSo when is autonomous driving really, really going to happen? And when, when are you able to do it and when is it going to be approved?
20:12Elon MuskOkay, just between us. Yeah.
20:14Mathias DöpfnerIt's a very discreet circle here.
20:16Elon MuskYeah. So. Well, first of all, I'm not, I'm not against, against people driving, to be clear. So I think people will drive cars basically as far into the future as I can imagine.
20:27Elon MuskIt's just that it's going to be increasingly unusual to drive your own car. And while it's fun to drive
20:36Audience Membera
20:36Elon Muskwell handling car on a winding road in beautiful terrain, of course that's fun. But it's not fun to drive a car in terrible gridlock traffic like, you know, going through extreme traffic.
20:49Elon MuskThat's no fun driving a car. So I think people are unlikely to most of the time want to commute or with, with their, and drive themselves. And you know, people are typically spending hour and a half a day, maybe two hours on average driving especially say like California or something like that.
21:11Elon MuskIt's very common and some people will actually commute like three hours a day sometimes. It's pretty crazy. So I think if you say fast forward to like 10 years from now, I think 10 years from now almost all cars will have full autonomy capability, all new cars produced.
21:37Elon MuskSo there's about 2 billion cars and trucks in the existing fleet. And the new vehicle production is about 5% of the fleet size, so about 100 million. So even to the point at which all cars are autonomous, It'll still take 20 years to replace all the cars, assuming that the number of cars and trucks in the fleet stays constant.
22:00Elon MuskBut like I say 10 years from now, I would say vast majority of cars, electricity, like maybe 70, 80% or more, and almost all cars autonomous. Electric autonomy is the absolutely the future, no question, it's just a question of when.
22:16Elon MuskBut then like I said, sometimes people think that that means the global fleet gets replaced instantly. It's like, nope, you have to go 20 years beyond that point before 20 years from the point at which all cars are new cars are electric, then the fleet will be replaced.
22:33Elon MuskThis is just important. It's not like some people are used to like mobile phones and that kind of thing. It's like two year or three year replacement rate. But cars are a much more expensive asset, a longer life.
22:45Elon MuskAnyway, to actually answer your question, I'm extremely confident of achieving full autonomy and releasing it to the Tesla customer base next year. Now there's an uncertain period of time for when regulatory approval will take.
23:05Elon MuskHow long will it take? But I think if you are able to accumulate billions of kilometers of autonomous driving, then it's difficult to argue and look at the accident rate when the car is autonomous versus non autonomous.
23:19Elon MuskAnd in fact our statistics already showed a massive difference when the car is on autopilot or not on autopilot, if the safety is much greater even with the current autopilot software.
23:29Mathias DöpfnerAnd we are discussing level five autonomy. So really full autonomy, will Europe lag behind or will it be approved here at the same time like in America or China?
23:40Elon MuskIt's hard to say exactly when it will be approved. I mean just. And our customers already know this, but the, the EU regulators are the most conservative and if people want that to be the case or not, our customers are sort of unhappy about it.
23:59Elon MuskBut yeah, they only meet every six months. Maybe meet more often, I don't know. So yeah, but I think at least some jurisdictions will allow full self driving next year.
24:17Mathias DöpfnerOkay. Exactly a year ago you were announcing in this very building that you're planning to build a new site near Berlin.
24:28Elon MuskYeah.
24:30Mathias DöpfnerAnd a couple of months later, in June you started. You want to finish it by July next year? We did a little tour this morning. It's impressive how advanced enhanced it is and it's almost unbelievable.
24:44Mathias DöpfnerGermany, and particularly Berlin is not world famous. For finishing construction sites in time and in budget. So you've created a kind of anti Berlin airport project. Why Berlin? Why did you go to Germany and to Berlin to get that big project done?
25:01AnnouncerSure.
25:02Elon MuskWell, first of all, I'm actually a big fan of Germany. I love Germany.
25:05NarratorIt's great.
25:05Elon MuskI've always. I have a lot of friends, German friends. And I think Berlin is a very fun city. And I think there's also from a location standpoint, people like, say young people can live in apartments at a reasonable price in the city of Berlin, but if somebody's got a family, they can still have an affordable house.
25:30Elon MuskSo it's a good location offering, you know, good living for people of all ages and incomes. And
25:40Mathias DöpfnerBerlin mayor once said, Berlin is poor but sexy.
25:43Elon MuskIs that what attracted you? Berlin's not that poor, but it's definitely sexy.
25:52Mathias DöpfnerCould you imagine?
25:54Elon MuskSo we're going to have like when we open the. You're all invited by the. When we have the opening for Giga Berlin, we're going to have just a big party, you know, we're going to have like start off from the day, have more sort of family music and then gradually get more hardcore and then go, you know, midnight techno till dawn.
26:16Mathias DöpfnerDo you plan to spend more time in Berlin yourself? You want to partly live here?
26:23Elon MuskYes, we spend a lot of time here.
26:25Mathias DöpfnerWhere do you sleep tonight?
26:28Elon MuskTonight's in the factory.
26:30Mathias DöpfnerIn the factory? Not in a hospital?
26:31Elon MuskWell, technically in a conference room in the factory, but yeah.
26:34Mathias DöpfnerYou sleep in a conference room in the not finished factory tonight?
26:37Elon MuskYeah, it gives me a good feel for what's going on.
26:39Mathias DöpfnerAlone or.
26:40Elon MuskYeah, I assume so. Just an invitation.
26:50Elon MuskYeah. Yeah.
26:50Audience MemberOkay.
26:52Mathias DöpfnerElon, you have so many projects. It's not only Tesla or Space X, it's Neuralink. It's the boring company. So many things. And when we discussed last time, I asked you what is the most important project or the most important topic for you to deal with in the foreseeable future and you said that is truly the role that AI is going to play in our society.
27:17Mathias DöpfnerCould you explain why and why that is a big opportunity but also seems to worry you?
27:25Elon MuskYeah, I think. Well, I mean, humans have been the smartest creature on Earth for a long time and that is going to change with what's typically called artificial general intelligence.
27:35Elon MuskSo this is say an AI that is smarter than a human in every way, could even simulate a human. So, you know, this is something we should be concerned about.
27:48Elon MuskI think there should be government oversight of AI developments, especially super advanced AI, it's just this is anything that is a potential danger to the public. We generally agree that this should have government oversight to ensure that the.
28:08Elon MuskThe public safety is taken care of.
28:10Mathias DöpfnerBecause you feel that one day mankind could serve the machines and not the other way around.
28:17Elon MuskHonestly, when I see people on their phones, I think we are already serving the machine. Yeah, it's like everyone's answering the questions every time you do a search or add information.
28:29Elon MuskYou're sort of building the digital group mind. But yeah. The advent of artificial general intelligence is called the singularity for a reason. Because just like a black hole, which is a singularity, it's difficult to predict what will happen.
28:52Elon MuskSo it's not as though the advent of AGI is necessarily bad, but it's bad as one of the possible outcomes.
28:57Mathias DöpfnerAnd when is singularity in the definition of Ray Kurzweil going to helm?
29:05Elon MuskWell, I think you're saying he's predicting 2025. I think that's reasonably accurate.
29:10Mathias DöpfnerAnd how can it be avoided? That is then more a threat for humanity than an opportunity. Is it a question of governance so that there's not too much power in one or in few hands?
29:22Mathias DöpfnerOr how would you, how would you make sure that it goes into the right direction?
29:27Elon MuskI think we should have a government oversight just like we do. We have government oversight and regulation of cars and aircraft and food and pharmaceuticals. These are all. You know, there are regulators that oversee these developments to ensure public safety.
29:47Elon MuskAnd I think digital superintelligence would also be potentially a public safety risk. And so it should be. I think it's very important to. For regulators to keep an eye on that.
30:01Mathias DöpfnerWho should own the data by then?
30:04Elon MuskI think everyone should own their own data, like individuals should own their data. And they certainly shouldn't be tricked by some terms and conditions of a website. And suddenly you don't own your data.
30:13Elon MuskThat's crazy. Who reads those terms and conditions anyway? So, so, But I think it's just, you know, like we wouldn't let people develop a nuclear bomb in the backyard just for the hell of it, you know, that seems crazy.
30:30Elon MuskSo digital superintelligence, I think, has the potential to be more dangerous than a nuclear bomb. So we should just. Somebody should be keeping an eye. We can't have the inmates running the
30:42Mathias Döpfnerasylum here, which is a global issue, because if we do well. But China has other rules and a different regulatory framework. That is another.
30:56Elon MuskYeah, I don't think. Yeah, generally this is one of the rebuttals I get from those developing AI. And Tesla is also developing a form of AI with self driving, but it's a very narrow form of AI just like it.
31:09Elon MuskLike the car is not going to wake up one day and take over the world. So, so it's. But the rebuttal, I guess, like, well, you know, China is going to have unfettered AI development.
31:23Elon MuskAnd so if we have regulations and it slows us down, then China will have it. And I'm like, look, from my conversations with government officials in China, they are, they, they're quite concerned about AI as well.
31:35Elon MuskWell, and they, in fact, they're probably more likely to have good oversight than, I think, other countries.
31:43Mathias DöpfnerWhat is the biggest challenge ahead of us in general? Not only with regard to AI. What is the biggest problem that needs to be solved?
31:58Elon MuskWhat's the biggest threat to humanity's future? Well, AI is certainly one of the biggest risks. It could be the biggest risk. I think we need to watch out about population collapse.
32:18Elon MuskThis is somewhat counterintuitive to most people. They think that, well, there's so many humans, maybe too many humans, but that's just because they live in a city. If you're in an aircraft and you look down, they say, if you dropped a cannonball, how often would you hit a person?
32:35Elon MuskBasically never. In fact, the stuff falling in from space all the time, natural meteorites, old rocket stages, all the time. But nobody worries about it because the actual. In fact, there's a good cool website called Wait, but why?
32:52Elon MuskAnd this guy Timur, and he actually just did the math, and all humans on Earth could fit in the city of New York on one floor. Don't even need the upper floors.
33:05Elon MuskSo that's actually the cross section of humans as seen from Earth is extremely tiny, basically vanishingly small. Almost nothing. So we need to watch out about population collapse. Low birth rate I think is a big risk.
33:24Elon MuskAnd it's also not exactly top secret. You can go look at the Wikipedia birth rate. This is actually, this is definitely. The civilization ends with a whimper, not a bang, because it would be a sad ending where the average age becomes very high and really the youth are effectively de facto enslaved to take care of the old people.
33:50Elon MuskThis is not a good way to end.
33:53Mathias DöpfnerDo you have any new projects dealing with these topics that you've just addressed?
33:59Elon MuskWell, I'm trying to set a good example on the kid front.
34:02HostSix kids?
34:03Elon MuskYes, for now.
34:10Mathias DöpfnerHow much time do you spend with them?
34:14Elon MuskI spend about as much time as they want to spend with me. I mean, they're not. Well, one's just a baby and the others are 14 and 16. And teenagers don't usually want to hang out with their parents that much.
34:31Elon MuskYou know, we just have Thanksgiving weekend, so all the kids were over. So, you know, if they want to spend more time with me, I say, like, I actually asked them, are you sure we don't want to hang out more?
34:45Elon MuskLike, no. So I think it's probably the right amount then since they. That's my. They don't want to hang out more. So I think we really should take this seriously.
34:57Elon MuskThe population collapse, operational intelligence. Obviously sustainable energy is important. The faster we transition to sustainable energy, the less of a gamble we're taking with climate. And I think there's going to be a lot of breakthroughs on the medical front, particularly around synthetic mRNA.
35:19Elon MuskYou can basically do anything with synthetic rna DNA. It's like a computer program. So, you know, I think with enough, with effort, that's not too crazy. You could probably stop aging, reverse it if you want.
35:40Elon MuskThese are. You can basically do it. You can turn someone into a freaking butterfly if you want, with the right DNA sequence. So, I mean, caterpillars do it. So.
35:50Mathias DöpfnerBut your project Neuralink is in a way empowering human intelligence versus artificial intelligence. That's the purpose of it, Is that correct?
35:58Elon MuskYeah. So neuralink in the short to medium term, neuralink is really just going to help cure brain injuries, brain and spine injuries. So it's like if somebody is a.
36:13Elon MuskIn fact, our first implanted devices in humans will be for quadriplegic teleplegics, allowing them to control a computer or a phone just using their mind. So like you can imagine, like if Stephen Hawking could just talk at normal speed or even faster than normal speed.
36:33Mathias DöpfnerLooking back for the last thousands of years, what is the most important invention of mankind so far?
36:43Elon MuskThe past thousand years?
36:44Mathias DöpfnerI guess it's millions.
36:46Elon MuskMillions. Well, I think language, being able to talk and express concepts, and this is probably the biggest invention of humanity's language.
36:59Mathias DöpfnerIt's an answer that we like very much in the publishing house.
37:02Elon MuskYeah, absolutely. No writing is exactly. Just writing really made a big difference. That guy Gutenberg, you really knew what he was doing.
37:11Mathias DöpfnerYou have one thing in common with Nicolas Lost Tesla, that's a photographic memory. Is that only a gift or sometimes a burden because you memorize too much?
37:19Elon MuskI have a photographic memory in some respects,
37:28Elon MuskFor technical stuff. I have a very good memory. So for a human, computers are much better at memory. Computers are really good memory.
37:37Mathias DöpfnerWhy is music so important for you?
37:39Elon MuskTechno music in particular well, it's pretty fun. I think it's, you know, you want to, I don't know, feel maximum human, you know, and so I think when people have like, sort of a rave and good music, it can be like, hey, maximum human.
37:58Elon MuskYou know, you want to really feel, you know, it's like, like what really gets you to feel, you know, And I think that, you know, having fun with friends and, you know, just crazy dancing is fun.
38:14Elon MuskPerhaps you laugh.
38:15Mathias DöpfnerOr techno music is the secret reason why you are building big projects in Berlin.
38:21Elon MuskHonestly, that's a significant factor.
38:24Mathias DöpfnerOkay, Elon, last question. You celebrated your 30th birthday with Masked Ball in Venice. 40th birthday. I was told you had a fight with a samurai sword fighter. What is your plan for your 50th birthday next year?
38:41Elon MuskWell, so my 40th birthday was the. Was in Venice. It was technically a post apocalyptic masked ball because, you know, after the apocalypse, how much clothing do you really have?
38:52Elon MuskYou know, I got to be a little ragged, a little burnt, you know.
39:00Mathias DöpfnerSo no plans for the 50th?
39:03Elon MuskYeah, 50th. The half century party. I have to think of something. Usually go with some kind of crazy theme. The party where I ended up wrestling with world champion tumor wrestler, which by the way, also caused me to burst a disc in my neck.
39:27Elon MuskSo five minutes of glory for five years of pain. That really hurt. So that party was Victorian Japanese steampunk. So that was cool. I have to think of something for the half century party.
39:47Mathias DöpfnerYou have a little time to think.
39:48Elon MuskHey, being on earth for a half century, that's like, hey, I'm still alive. Wow, cool.
39:54Mathias DöpfnerOne very last question. When I asked you, what is the meaning of life during a dinner 42,
40:02Hostyou said after a while.
40:04Mathias DöpfnerAfter a while. Well, probably this wonderful French cheese. Could you please explain?
40:12Elon MuskWell, I was just saying that, you know, you want to take a moment to appreciate things in life and the sensations. Food's incredible and like, there's just so many good things that you can experience.
40:25Elon MuskSome of them cost nothing really. You know, have a walk in nature or just a nice meal, and it's like, wow, that's pretty great, you know, and we should take a moment to appreciate these little things, big things, the things that move your heart.
40:44Elon MuskI think that's probably the meaning of life. As close a definition as I can think.
40:50Mathias DöpfnerThank you very much, Elon.
40:51Elon MuskAll right,
40:57AnnouncerThis is your captain speaking again. Thank you, Elon. Thank you, Matthias. It's a pleasure having you on board and learning so much about our future. Before I come back with some information about our flight, I'm now honored to welcome Secretary Jens Spahn and ask him on stage and share his thoughts about Elon Musk's achievements and responsibilities.
41:19AnnouncerThe vessel's floor is yours, Mr. Secretary.
41:32HostSo, a wonderful evening to all of you. An evening between the struggles on Earth and the vision towards Mars. And regarding Earth, we are meeting here today in a very special time.
41:44HostWe are experiencing the worst pandemic since the Spanish flu. For roughly 10 months now, governments, but above all citizens worldwide, have been combating the virus and its consequences. People are experiencing a great deal of suffering, hardship and sacrifice.
42:02HostYet today, at the beginning of December, we also have a reason for optimism. We can be very optimistic that we will have an effective vaccine against the new virus faster than ever before in human history.
42:17HostWith a vaccine, we can finally hope to have a tool that will help us beat the virus. It is true that some people have misgivings about vaccination to the point of rejecting it at all costs.
42:30HostThis is an attitude I find very difficult to understand. It was only vaccination that first made it possible for humankind to liberate itself from many of the fatal diseases that had plagued our ancestors for centuries.
42:45HostPlagues that had led to fear and superstition and obstacle to progress. Vaccination is progress. And today that word progress is for many synonymous with one name, that of Elon Musk.
43:00HostMr. Musk, I'm pleased to have the honor of paying tribute to you in these very special times. You are without doubt a visionary. The name Musk stands for ideas that were often far ahead of their time.
43:15HostPaying online with PayPal, electromobility and sustainable energy with Tesla. And not seldom does the name Musk also represent ideas that at first glance might seem a little crazy. The Hippoloop project is one of those.
43:29HostThe vision that persons and goods can be accelerated in the double tube to speeds of up to 1200 kilometers per hour. This also includes connecting. Connecting the human brain to a computer.
43:42HostThe subject of Neuralinks just discussed. Neuralinks research since 2016 and of course private space travel with SpaceX is also an integral part of the mission. Thanks to Elon Musk, seemingly crazy ideas become reality.
44:00HostElon Musk has realized the most powerful thing we as human beings possess is our idea. Years Tesla's ability to rise to become the world's most valuable car manufacturer was not primarily the result of its sales figures.
44:14HostTesla's worth is a reflection of an idea, a vision. An idea that allows many people to have faith in progress in a better future. It is supported, of course, by business expertise.
44:29HostElon Musk is building his newest gigafactory in Branbury on mark land. Many Germans associate brand book with the poet Theodor Fontane, who once walked the sense of the mark.
44:41HostFontana wrote, between arrogance and humility lies a third trait that is part of life. And that, simply put, is courage. Should you not yet know Fontana? By the way, for your Douglas Adam non digital bookshelf, I hope there is one Fontana.
44:58HostShould you not yet know him, Mr. Musk, I think that fits you quite well, because courage you most certainly have. At the same time, your choice of Germany as the location for your factory is hardly only a question of courage, but just as much the result of keen calculation.
45:17HostGermany is a country of automobile. Automobile pioneers Karl and Berta Benz, Rudolf Diesel, Gottlieb Daimler, Ferdinand Porsche. The list of achievements by Germans or made in Germany is long.
45:31HostMr. Musk, you know that Germany still possesses great innovative strength today. Many well trained, creative people and a solid infrastructure. Great conditions for courageous entrepreneurship for tomorrow's innovators and pioneers.
45:46HostIn the meantime, you probably also recognize the world bureaucratie in German. Indeed, constructing a factory from scratch in only a few months. That is a new experience even for our country.
46:02HostAt least an experience we seem to have forgotten. We need a bit more of the mass courage on our side to reduce bureaucratic obstacles and thereby promote innovation. Because also it is true that innovation needs a reliable framework.
46:18HostIt also needs freedom to flourish. In the 70 years since the creation of the Federal Republic of Germany, we have often succeeded in striking this balance. Germany is an economically strong country, cosmopolitan and free, an anchor of stability and amity in Europe.
46:37HostIt is something we can be proud of today. However. However, at the start of the 20s of the 21st century, there are a number of questions we also ask ourselves.
46:49HostWhat do we the twenties. What do we want the twenties to look like? How can we find the right answers in complicated times? What legacy do we want to leave to our children?
47:02HostHow can we maintain the German success model, sustain and expand our prosperity as well as the freedom and security associated with it in times where it is under threat from many sides?
47:14HostSo we need a strong state that encourage economic activity because German firms can't. Because German firms suffer some clear disadvantages when competing with monopolies from the US and with a state economy like China's.
47:31HostIn return, I our state should invest massively in education, infrastructure and research and should launch support programs not for individual companies, but for entire branches of the economy in the twenties.
47:45HostWe want to remain export, champion a master of innovation, push forward digitalization, promote research and strengthen entrepreneurial culture. Only progress will ensure that the next generation will have it even better.
48:00HostIt's all about making space for ideas to flourish. From all that we've heard, Elon Musk knows this and tries to implement it in his businesses. Being a visionary does not necessarily mean always being right, nor does it mean being free of contradiction.
48:17HostIt was only recently that Elon Musk and I got to meet each other personally, and we're also able to talk about the pandemic situation. Tesla is through the subsidiary Grumman Automated Automation, a partner of the German Dutch biotech company Quebec, which is doing research on a coronavirus vaccine.
48:37HostQuebec is using RNA bioreactors developed by Elon Musk companies. I'm very pleased to see this commitment. However, I have read that Elon Musk himself does not intend to get vaccinated.
48:50HostOh, like me. But still, I also know that Elon Musk takes a critical view of many of the measures that we as governments are taking to control the pandemic and to protect our citizens.
49:02HostOne of his statements struck me especially that anyone who is at risk should be in quarantine until the storm passes. In connection with the observation you just made again tonight that everyone has to die sometime, you yes, health protection does not take precedence over all else in the pandemic.
49:21HostIt is always about balance. No matter how we act or do not act, harm will occur. We must therefore strike a balance. As Minister of Health, I think it is only right for us to weight the health protection very highly.
49:37HostI, for one, would have great difficulty doing other work otherwise. At the same time, it is legitimate to demand a different rating. Such debates are an indispensable part of our free societies, and it is important that we are not implacable in these discussions.
49:56HostBut we listen to each other and are willing to assume, at least sometimes, that the other one might have a point, or that their arguments could be valid. Debates that deteriorate into moralizing seldom reflect reality in all its diversity.
50:14HostSo it would be highly unfair to imply that Elon Musk might care too little. Through his private foundation, Elon Musk funds research into renewable energy, space travel, child health, education and mathematics, computer science, natural science, technology, as well as safe AI.
50:32HostIn his private capacity capacity, he is consistently donating large sums of money to charity projects, such as for planting 1 million trees. Looking at Elon Musk means repeatedly encountering a seemingly insatiable zest for action and Discovery.
50:49HostThe many articles about the supposedly declining innovative power of our Western world and societies then just seems to be worlds away. In such instances, Elon Musk stands in the limelight.
51:02HostHe is the spearhead of an entire generation of courageous entrepreneurs and bold scientists. People who believe in the power of ideas and that progress is possible in spite of resistance and setbacks.
51:19HostThis gives us courage. Despite the great challenges that we as humans are currently, currently facing. We are living in a time of great opportunity. An economically successful, environmentally responsible and socially balanced world is possible.
51:36HostIt is possible through innovation and courage, not through individual austerity or through fear. Experiences and encounters with innovative and creative people such as Elon Musk reconfirm my basic object, optimism.
51:51HostTime after time, we do have the power to shape our future. Elon Musk wanted to change the world a little and ended up revolutionizing it. This teaches us that everything is in our own hands.
52:07HostIt is up to each and every one of us, above all. Now, in this often difficult time, we may not lose sight of the future ahead of us with all of its alarming, disastrous aspects.
52:24HostIn many areas, the current pandemic strengthens precisely the willingness to shape the future. It is leading us faster than ever down some appropriate and necessary path. As the old saying goes, crisis presents opportunity.
52:41HostIn this pandemic, we are looking learning more on a daily basis together, in other words, in public. We are adapting our strategies. We are consistently trying to act in a targeted and proportionate way, starting afresh every day based on the largest knowledge.
52:59HostThis spirit of progress, this openness, this willingness to learn is something we must sustain in the future. I'm convinced that Germany has a great deal of this visionary power that drives you, Mr.
53:14HostMusk. We simply need to more often have the courage to believe in it ourselves. In this respect, you are a great example to us. Congratulations on the 2020 Axel Springer Award.
53:27HostI wish you the greatest possible success for the future and even more. Stay healthy. All the best. Tilty bows headed obviously and we can get closer. All the best.
53:43AnnouncerThank you. Mr. Spahn, this is again your captain speaking. Some information about the flight. Outside temperature is about 1600 kelvin. So I kindly ask you not to open the windows as we leave hyperspace.
54:10AnnouncerWelcome to Mars orbit. We will reach our final destination, Mars surface. In the scheduled time the temperature will be between 0 degrees Celsius and minus 100 degrees Celsius. So first rule, don't panic.
54:25AnnouncerPlease excuse me, I just got the information that we have a special delivery right now, right here. This is rather unusual, but please Let me check.
54:59AnnouncerGood evening. Good evening, Elon. Good evening, everybody. I'm your captain tonight. Would you please hold my helmet? Thank you very much. Wow. It feels so comfortable. I never felt that comfortable before.
55:15AnnouncerThank you. It's your original SpaceX overall, and I will wear it many times from now on because I never felt so free. I can breathe. I have oxygen in my head.
55:24AnnouncerAnd I've experienced that before standing on the stage. It's a bit of a tear, you know, it does make me slim. But it's. It's okay. It's okay for me tonight.
55:34AnnouncerI'm really happy to be here and I'm really thankful to meet you because I'm also thankful for your work and achievement for different reasons, because as you might remember, we seen it in the movie.
55:45AnnouncerI helped the microphone. I was the one. It was my hand holding the microphone when you announced that you're gonna build Tesla here in Berlin, Brandenburg. And so, thanks to you, I made it in every German news show.
56:02AnnouncerNot me, but parts of me made it into every German news show, which made me really famous. My hands are now one of the most famous hands we have in Germany.
56:11AnnouncerAnd my hands are holding your present. Now it's a present. We were thinking about what can we. I mean, what can we give you as a present? It's really difficult, you know.
56:23AnnouncerIt's really difficult. We were thinking about a spa weekend in Brandenburg. Not so good. A helicopter flight over Berlin. A fancy set of steak knives. You might have it already.
56:37AnnouncerSo we were thinking about what could be nice for you. And can you guess what's inside? Come on stage, I tell you. Come on. No, it's no cake and it's no book.
56:49AnnouncerCome on stage. As we heard, you are a visionary. And you are a businessman, but you are also. You don't not only like to listen to music, but you also do music.
57:00AnnouncerYou compose. Yeah, it's a record.
57:02Elon MuskOkay.
57:03AnnouncerYou compose music.
57:04Audience MemberGreat.
57:05AnnouncerThere is one famous song. It didn't make it to the charts, but it's really famous.
57:09Elon MuskIt really ranked on SoundCloud. That's a joke.
57:13AnnouncerBut the name of the song is don't doubt your vibe.
57:18Audience MemberYes.
57:19AnnouncerDo you recognize it?
57:20Elon MuskYeah. Don't doubt your vibe because it's true. Because it's you.
57:26AnnouncerOh, that's good. I mean, it has. It has so many possibilities to really go right through the ceiling. Yeah.
57:35Elon MuskI mean, if you do enough auto tune, it works out.
57:38AnnouncerYeah, yeah, yeah, we will. When did you write it? When did you compose it?
57:43Elon MuskWell, actually, I just woke up one Morning. And I was singing the lyrics. They're not very complicated. And then my girlfriend Grimes recorded it on her phone.
57:58AnnouncerYeah.
57:58Elon MuskAnd she said, this is great. We should make a song out of this.
58:01AnnouncerYeah.
58:02Elon MuskAnd so then we called our friend Mike, who is a great producer, and. And we went to the studio. To the. The Muppet studio. Jim Henson Studio.
58:10AnnouncerYeah.
58:11Elon MuskAnd we. We made the song.
58:14AnnouncerYeah.
58:14Elon MuskAnd then I created a fake record label. Label called Emoji Records. Emoji.
58:21AnnouncerWithin a minute. Yeah. Yeah.
58:22Elon MuskLike Emoji Gangster. Like that. And on SoundCloud. And then I uploaded it to SoundCloud, and that's how it went.
58:32AnnouncerPerfect.
58:32Elon MuskYeah.
58:33AnnouncerOn which occasion should it be played?
58:35Elon MuskI guess if you're doubting your vibe.
58:37AnnouncerYeah.
58:37Elon MuskYou know, or anytime.
58:39AnnouncerDid you ever doubt your vibe?
58:42Elon MuskYeah.
58:43AnnouncerReally? What was it?
58:47Elon MuskDecember two second? I don't know, 92.
58:52AnnouncerCan we expect more? Can we expect no more? It's very promising. I mean.
58:56Elon MuskWell, I do think that it would be kind of fun to do a cover of Barbie Girl by Aqua.
59:04AnnouncerYou know that song, Barbie Girl?
59:06Elon MuskBarbie Girl, Yeah.
59:07AnnouncerViagra.
59:07Elon MuskI'm a Barbie girl In a Barbie world
59:11Announcerit's fantastic. You know, it blessed me everywhere. Imagination.
59:17Elon MuskSo you know the lyrics?
59:18AnnouncerYeah, I know the lyrics. Did you write it?
59:21Elon MuskNo.
59:21AnnouncerOkay.
59:22Audience MemberBut.
59:22Elon MuskBut I think it would be fun to do a cover of Bobby Girl. But Cyber Girl.
59:27AnnouncerI'm a cyber girl.
59:28Elon MuskYeah. In a cyber world Perfect. Yeah.
59:31AnnouncerOkay. You. You have to invent.
59:34Elon MuskIt's fantastic. In the future, there's no plastic. You know, that kind of thing.
59:37AnnouncerYeah, I doubt that. I doubt that. So. But now, Ralph, hold on to your seat. We have the honor to have one of the most famous DJs in the world.
59:46Elon MuskCool.
59:47AnnouncerHe's here. And he remixed your song, and we have him here. Sven Faith is here tonight.
59:54Elon MuskAll right.
59:55AnnouncerSven, could you come up and stage?
1:00:00Audience MemberHello.
1:00:01AnnouncerHe. He. He did this original. It's inside here. Sven?
1:00:05Audience MemberYes.
1:00:06AnnouncerHow was it to work with the material? How was the material? How did you.
1:00:12Audience MemberI was my wife, so I had a good feeling with the title, and I made out the best with a friend of mine, and I hope you like it.
1:00:19Audience MemberAnd. But it's not just about that. It's. It's the whole box.
1:00:24AnnouncerYeah.
1:00:24Audience MemberWhat is quite interesting. Please.
1:00:26AnnouncerWho designed it? Who designed it?
1:00:28Audience MemberMy son.
1:00:28Elon MuskOkay.
1:00:29Audience MemberMy son draw the COVID And his name is tiga, and he's 10 years old. He is, by the way, big fan of your work.
1:00:40AnnouncerIt's an absolute original. When would you play it on your DJ set? Would you Play it rather at the beginning.
1:00:48Audience MemberSo we have.
1:00:49AnnouncerWhere would it be?
1:00:50Audience MemberWe have unique printed vinyls and John
1:00:57AnnouncerTaylor tables in your conference room on the.
1:00:59Elon MuskOn the construction site.
1:01:01Audience MemberSo I. I choose essential techno tracks from the last 30 years.
1:01:07Elon MuskGreat graphic. Wow. This is cool.
1:01:09Audience MemberGraph track is included. And friends of mine like number one, Roman Flugel. Mars craft work is great.
1:01:16Elon MuskMobi Mobile.
1:01:18Audience MemberThat's that music. So this is unique and that's great.
1:01:23HostWow.
1:01:23Elon MuskOnly very thoughtful.
1:01:24Audience MemberThank you for you and enjoy. I hope you have a turntable and I do. There is a QR code inside.
1:01:30Elon MuskOkay.
1:01:32AnnouncerThank you very much.
1:01:34Elon MuskThank you.
1:01:35Audience MemberThank you. Thank you.
1:01:38AnnouncerSo we hope to make you happy tonight.
1:01:40Elon MuskAll right.
1:01:40AnnouncerIt's a pleasure having you.
1:01:42Elon MuskIt's. It's really. Thank you for doing this. This is really fun. And wow. Great production value. This is. I feel like I'm on like a cool Disney ride or something.
1:01:53Elon MuskBut I do want to just say to acknowledge the great people at Tesla and SpaceX. Neuralink Boring Company. Really. I accept this award on your behalf for all the great things that you've done.
1:02:07Elon MuskSo super appreciated. But I really want to acknowledge very strongly the people at the companies who made it happen.
1:02:14AnnouncerThank you very much.
1:02:15Audience MemberThank you.
1:02:16AnnouncerElon Musk at the Spring Award in 2020. You can sit down now of because. Ladies and gentlemen, we're about to land. Please fast your seat belts again.
1:02:47AnnouncerSam.
1:03:40AnnouncerWelcome on Mars. We just landed after this. Yeah. Exhausting and exciting and surprising and wonderful journey. Looks great, doesn't it? Yes. You can follow now our assistance or Mr.
1:03:55AnnouncerDopner. He's. He's the tallest guy here. Just walk after him. And we have a little refreshment for you. And you don't even have to choose between salt and sweet or ham or cheese.
1:04:06AnnouncerYou can take both tonight, which is just great. Just have a nice evening and enjoy. Good night. Thank you.