Part 8/12:
One of Russell’s most significant contributions has been proposing bold ideas—some of which Elon Musk has directly acknowledged or are already manifesting. For example:
$5 Billion Investment into XAI
In July 2024, Russell suggested that Tesla should invest $5 billion into XAI, an Elon Musk-led AI company. Elon replied with an “interesting” response, implying curiosity but no commitment. Russell believes that XAI, backed by Tesla’s vast real-world data from autonomous vehicles, could be pivotal for Tesla’s push toward artificial general intelligence (AGI). He advocates for Tesla to control its AI destiny rather than outsource it, emphasizing synergy with Tesla’s autonomous vehicle and robot ambitions.