Elon Musk & Grok: Exploring the Idea of Love with AI

Elon Musk's Weekend Activities Following Shareholder Approval

Following the approval of a potentially $1 trillion compensation package by Tesla shareholders, CEO Elon Musk has been observed engaging in typical weekend activities on his social media platform, X.

A post shared early Saturday morning, precisely at 4:20 a.m. ET, featured a video created using Grok Imagine, the new photo and video generation tool developed by his company, xAI.

Grok Imagine Video Prompts

Musk revealed that the video was produced in response to the prompt, “She smiles and says, ‘I will always love you.’” The resulting video depicts an animated woman on a rain-swept street, uttering the phrase with a clearly artificial voice.

Just twenty-four minutes later, another Grok-generated video was shared, this time featuring actress Sydney Sweeney. However, the voice used in the video was markedly different from Sweeney’s natural tone, with the character stating, “You are so cringe.”

Reactions to Musk's Posts

The AI-generated content sparked considerable discussion among X users. While the use of AI to create depictions of women and even establish virtual relationships is becoming more prevalent, the “always love you” video drew particular criticism.

Some users labeled it “the most divorced post of all time,” while others deemed it “the saddest post in the history of this website.”

Joyce Carol Oates' Critique

However, the most pointed critique of Musk posted over the weekend came from 87-year-old, award-winning author Joyce Carol Oates.

Oates responded to a lengthy thread where a user favorably quoted Musk’s retort to a Texas state senator regarding his compensation. She observed that Musk “never posts anything that indicates that he enjoys or is even aware of what virtually everyone appreciates.”

This includes sharing content about friends, family, nature, pets, films, music, or literature. She continued, stating, “In fact he seems totally uneducated, uncultured.”

Musk's Response

Oates concluded by suggesting that “the poorest persons on Twitter may have access to more beauty & meaning in life than the ‘most wealthy person in the world.’”

Musk’s reply was direct and dismissive, stating, “Oates is a liar and delights in being mean. Not a good human.”

This exchange occurred amidst celebrations surrounding the approved compensation package, which could potentially reach $1 trillion in value.