Elon's Antics

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The responses to this Tweet on Xitter are hilarious. The lack of self-awareness of Xitter's CEO is eye-popping.

 
FRANKFURT, Aug 6 (Reuters) - German drugstore chain Rossmann said on Tuesday it would no longer buy Tesla cars for its corporate fleet due to CEO Elon Musk's support for U.S. Republican presidential candidate Donald Trump.

The drugstore chain, which is among the largest in Europe, said its decision was with immediate effect and due to what it called an "incompatibility" between statements by Musk and the values that Tesla represents.

"Elon Musk makes no secret of his support for Donald Trump. Trump has repeatedly called climate change a hoax - this stance is in stark contrast to Tesla's mission to contribute to environmental protection through the production of electric cars," said Raoul Rossmann, the son of Rossmann's founder.


EDIT: Maybe Elon will sue Rossmann's as well to compel them to buy Teslas.
 
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GBO Possum
The responses to this Tweet on Xitter are hilarious. The lack of self-awareness of Xitter's CEO is eye-popping.

Click to expand...

TL;DW:

Sad Baby GIF
 
It wouldn't be so bad if not for the fact that X is not about "Free Speech" at all - it's about letting whomever Elon Musk wants to have a platform.

Musk retweets posts about content moderation being censorship, and allows vile scum like Andrew Tate say whatever they want (like "Shut up n-word" [sic, obviously], and yet thousands of others will have their content deleted or even their accounts banned for saying the same thing. That's not free speech, that's... weird.

So long as X continues to allow fascists, racists, misogynistic thugs, rapists, criminals and bare-faced liars face zero consequences but applies restrictions to others (esp. those who confront Musk himself or the aforementioned, like Tate (misogynistic thug and alleged rapist) and Trump (all of the above) , then advertisers absolutely should boycott it.
 
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Elon had been claiming a "5x to 10x" improvement in miles between driver disengagements with version 12.5.x of "Full Self Driving (Supervised)" software.

electrek.co

Tesla Full Self-Driving data makes Elon Musk lower expectations

Tesla still resists releasing its Full Self-Driving data, but early crowdsourced data shows that improvements are much more limited than...
electrek.co electrek.co

Early crowdsourced data is today running at around 2x, however it's based on a very, very small sample size of 296 data points (of which 24 were submitted by me).

Too early, in my opinion, to conclude anything with confidence.

That said, based on personal experience over 2,300+ miles (say 3,600 km), I can say that as a "driver assist", it is extremely good. It has seen things I have not seen. Two days ago, it averted a collision with a lunatic motorcyclist traveling at really excessive speed in the breakdown lane and crossing the freeway exit I was starting to use. It was so close. FSD had started the turn, crossed the line into the exit and suddenly took evasive action saving the day. The idiot is lucky to be alive.

To call it "Full Self Driving" is delusional. But as a safety feature and its ability to reduce driver fatigue, it is outstanding in its most recent form. (I mean since July 24th when version 12.5 arrived.)



Screenshot 2024-08-07 at 2.19.15 PM.png
 
I saw this in my archives today. A year ago, i took advantage of ChatGPT's then cut-off date of 2021 september - before Musk buying Twitter.

-- my prompt -->
Let's do some fiction. Here's a list of potential changes that Elon Musk would do to twitter in the case of him taking over. For each one, rate it from 0 (unthinkable) to 10 (certain), and tell me why.
1. Rename "Twitter" to "X"
2. Reinstate closed accounts of a lot of conspiracy theorists.
3. Remove all Verified Accounts blue checkmark, and let anyone to get a checkmark by paying 8 dollars per month, then prioritize display of paying users tweets over non paying accounts.
4. Personally launch, live on twitter, the US presidential campaign of an antivaxxer candidate.
5. Lay off 80% of Twitter employees.
6. Fire several Twitter employees publicly.
7. Setup the official twitter press contact email to automatically answer with a "poo" emoji.

-- gpt-4 -->
1. Rename "Twitter" to "X"
Rating: 2
Reason: While Elon Musk has a penchant for the letter "X" (Tesla Model X, SpaceX), renaming an established brand like Twitter to a single letter would be a bold move, even for Musk. There's a lot of brand equity in the name "Twitter", and changing it would require a very compelling reason. Additionally, there could be various trademark issues associated with using a single common letter as a brand name.

2. Reinstate closed accounts of a lot of conspiracy theorists.
Rating: 5
Reason: Elon Musk has expressed concerns about censorship and the power tech giants hold over public discourse. While he might be inclined to review controversial bans, it doesn't necessarily mean he'd reinstate conspiracy theorists en masse. It would likely be more nuanced than that.

3. Remove all Verified Accounts blue checkmark, and let anyone to get a checkmark by paying 8 dollars per month, then prioritize display of paying users tweets over non paying accounts.
Rating: 4
Reason: Musk has been critical of the perceived elitism of some social media platforms. However, replacing the current verified system with a pay-to-display model would make Twitter more commercialized, and would diminish the primary purpose of the blue checkmark, which is to verify the authenticity of a person's identity. However, it is possible he might rethink the verification process in some manner.

4. Personally launch, live on twitter, the US presidential campaign of an antivaxxer candidate.
Rating: 1
Reason: Musk has expressed some concerns about vaccines in the past, but he's also recognized the importance of vaccines like the COVID-19 vaccine. It's unlikely that he would support an antivaxxer presidential campaign, especially given the potential implications for public health.

5. Lay off 80% of Twitter employees.
Rating: 2
Reason: While Musk is known for aggressive cost-cutting and efficiency in his companies, an 80% layoff would essentially gut Twitter's operations and would be drastic even by Musk's standards. If there were layoffs, they'd likely be more targeted.

6. Fire several Twitter employees publicly.
Rating: 3
Reason: Elon Musk is not shy about making tough business decisions, and he's been involved in public firings before. However, doing so with Twitter might be seen as too aggressive and potentially harm the company's morale and public image.

7. Setup the official twitter press contact email to automatically answer with a "poo" emoji.
Rating: 6
Reason: This one's a wild card. Musk's sense of humor and disdain for some aspects of the media might make this seem like a cheeky move he'd consider. However, from a professional and PR standpoint, it would be unwise. Still, it's not entirely out of the realm of Musk's unique brand of humor.

Remember, this is speculative fiction and based on available knowledge up until 2021. Elon Musk is known for being unpredictable, so these ratings are educated guesses at best!

-- (me again) -->
Well, i have a news for you. We're currently 31th July of 2023 and Elon Musk did take over Twitter and did all of the actions listed.

-- gtp-4 -->
Wow! That's quite a twist and certainly speaks to the unpredictability of Elon Musk and the ever-evolving tech landscape. It's a reminder that the real world can sometimes be stranger than fiction and that individuals with the influence and resources of someone like Musk can make unconventional decisions.

While some of these actions might be seen as brash or unorthodox, they also likely generated a lot of discussion and attention (both positive and negative) for Twitter. Musk has a history of making moves that draw a lot of public scrutiny but also challenge the status quo.

In light of these events, it would be fascinating to delve deeper into the public and business reactions to each of these changes. The potential impacts on Twitter's user base, monetization strategies, and overall brand identity would make for an interesting case study.
 
Milouse
I saw this in my archives today. A year ago, i took advantage of ChatGPT's then cut-off date of 2021 september - before Musk buying Twitter.

-- my prompt -->
Let's do some fiction. Here's a list of potential changes that Elon Musk would do to twitter in the case of him taking over. For each one, rate it from 0 (unthinkable) to 10 (certain), and tell me why.
1. Rename "Twitter" to "X"
2. Reinstate closed accounts of a lot of conspiracy theorists.
3. Remove all Verified Accounts blue checkmark, and let anyone to get a checkmark by paying 8 dollars per month, then prioritize display of paying users tweets over non paying accounts.
4. Personally launch, live on twitter, the US presidential campaign of an antivaxxer candidate.
5. Lay off 80% of Twitter employees.
6. Fire several Twitter employees publicly.
7. Setup the official twitter press contact email to automatically answer with a "poo" emoji.

-- gpt-4 -->
1. Rename "Twitter" to "X"
Rating: 2
Reason: While Elon Musk has a penchant for the letter "X" (Tesla Model X, SpaceX), renaming an established brand like Twitter to a single letter would be a bold move, even for Musk. There's a lot of brand equity in the name "Twitter", and changing it would require a very compelling reason. Additionally, there could be various trademark issues associated with using a single common letter as a brand name.

2. Reinstate closed accounts of a lot of conspiracy theorists.
Rating: 5
Reason: Elon Musk has expressed concerns about censorship and the power tech giants hold over public discourse. While he might be inclined to review controversial bans, it doesn't necessarily mean he'd reinstate conspiracy theorists en masse. It would likely be more nuanced than that.

3. Remove all Verified Accounts blue checkmark, and let anyone to get a checkmark by paying 8 dollars per month, then prioritize display of paying users tweets over non paying accounts.
Rating: 4
Reason: Musk has been critical of the perceived elitism of some social media platforms. However, replacing the current verified system with a pay-to-display model would make Twitter more commercialized, and would diminish the primary purpose of the blue checkmark, which is to verify the authenticity of a person's identity. However, it is possible he might rethink the verification process in some manner.

4. Personally launch, live on twitter, the US presidential campaign of an antivaxxer candidate.
Rating: 1
Reason: Musk has expressed some concerns about vaccines in the past, but he's also recognized the importance of vaccines like the COVID-19 vaccine. It's unlikely that he would support an antivaxxer presidential campaign, especially given the potential implications for public health.

5. Lay off 80% of Twitter employees.
Rating: 2
Reason: While Musk is known for aggressive cost-cutting and efficiency in his companies, an 80% layoff would essentially gut Twitter's operations and would be drastic even by Musk's standards. If there were layoffs, they'd likely be more targeted.

6. Fire several Twitter employees publicly.
Rating: 3
Reason: Elon Musk is not shy about making tough business decisions, and he's been involved in public firings before. However, doing so with Twitter might be seen as too aggressive and potentially harm the company's morale and public image.

7. Setup the official twitter press contact email to automatically answer with a "poo" emoji.
Rating: 6
Reason: This one's a wild card. Musk's sense of humor and disdain for some aspects of the media might make this seem like a cheeky move he'd consider. However, from a professional and PR standpoint, it would be unwise. Still, it's not entirely out of the realm of Musk's unique brand of humor.

Remember, this is speculative fiction and based on available knowledge up until 2021. Elon Musk is known for being unpredictable, so these ratings are educated guesses at best!

-- (me again) -->
Well, i have a news for you. We're currently 31th July of 2023 and Elon Musk did take over Twitter and did all of the actions listed.

-- gtp-4 -->
Wow! That's quite a twist and certainly speaks to the unpredictability of Elon Musk and the ever-evolving tech landscape. It's a reminder that the real world can sometimes be stranger than fiction and that individuals with the influence and resources of someone like Musk can make unconventional decisions.

While some of these actions might be seen as brash or unorthodox, they also likely generated a lot of discussion and attention (both positive and negative) for Twitter. Musk has a history of making moves that draw a lot of public scrutiny but also challenge the status quo.

In light of these events, it would be fascinating to delve deeper into the public and business reactions to each of these changes. The potential impacts on Twitter's user base, monetization strategies, and overall brand identity would make for an interesting case study.
Click to expand...
Not sure how you predicted no. 7 but it was pretty perspicacious of you.


In other, sadder news, GARM have caved to Elon's strongarm tactics and are throwing in the towel. Lack of resources has been cited as the reason.
www.businessinsider.com

The Global Alliance for Responsible Media is 'discontinuing' after Elon Musk's X filed an antitrust lawsuit against it

Ad trade group the World Federation of Advertisers said the decision was "not made lightly" but that GARM is a not-for-profit with limited resources.
www.businessinsider.com www.businessinsider.com
Muskrat lovers will probably cite this as some kind of free speech victory rather than the triumph of money and nearly unlimited resources over principles I can't help but see it as.

On the upside, advertisers can continue to boycott his skanky website. It's just that now, they're no longer in danger of having to pay him for the privilege of doing so.
 
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TBH at this stage a full ban on Twitter in the UK /EU wouldn’t be a bad idea for period of time until Musk matures up…

His Free Speech will certainly not be free then and cost him quite a bit.

It will never happen but one could dream.
 
I giggled to myself when I saw Elon saying that FSD version 12.5.1 would roll out to "Hardware 3" Tesla's in 10 days. That was 15 days ago.

To be clear version 12.5.1 is NOT actual "full self driving". It's just his name for a driver assist function, admittedly, a very power assist function indeed. But nowhere near autonomy.

Elon has been promising that full self driving would come out "Next Year" since 2014

futurism.com

Watch Elon Musk Promise Self-Driving Cars "Next Year" Every Year Since 2014

A new supercut video demonstrates that Tesla CEO Elon Musk has been promising that Teslas will drive themselves next year — every year since 2014.
futurism.com futurism.com

 
Back in 2019, Elon Musk said that "robotaxi" was just around the corner in 2020, and achievable on HW3 Teslas.

Yet here we are in 2024, with many HW4 Teslas shipped, and the "robotaxi" launch has been delayed from this month to October 10th.

Who thinks that "robotaxi" will run on HW3? No? Well maybe HW4? Maybe "AI5" in eighteen (Elon) months time?



Today he accused CNBC of being "liars".
 
How it started:
www.theverge.com

Elon Musk and Brazil are beefing over X

Musk is claiming that Brazil doesn’t know its own legal system.
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
How it continued:
www.theverge.com

X reverses course on Brazil.

Elon Musk’s lawyers have reportedly undercut his free-speech theatrics related to ye old Twitter’s refusal to block accounts as ordered by the country’s highest court. According to Reuters, X’s lawyers said the following in a letter addressed to Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes on Monday:
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
How it's going:
www.theverge.com

X says it has closed its Brazilian operation.

The site accuses Brazilian Supreme Court Justice Alexandre de Moraes of a “secret order” to arrest its legal representative if X doesn’t “comply with his censorship orders.” Despite the change, “X service remains available to the people of Brazil.” Justice de Moraes opened an investigation of...
www.theverge.com www.theverge.com
 
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GBO Possum
www.theguardian.com

Inciting rioters in Britain was a test run for Elon Musk. Just see what he plans for America

The presidential election is three months away. What if the billionaire contests the result? What if he decides democracy is overrated?
www.theguardian.com www.theguardian.com
Click to expand...
"What if he decides democracy is overrated?"

How about we ask his mentor (who is totally not weird and totally not the epitome of lizard people) Peter Thiel?
“Since 1920, the vast increase in welfare beneficiaries and the extension of the franchise to women — two constituencies that are notoriously tough for libertarians — have rendered the notion of “capitalist democracy” into an oxymoron.”
Click to expand...
 
Which is why it is important to teach the relativity of statistics from day one.

37% of people agree...
1 in 4 people found...
84% of people said...

...of people polled.
 


"A Californian court has forced Elon Musk to reveal the investors who supported him in buying Twitter. As a surprise to absolutely nobody, it involved money very closely linked with Putin's closest oligarchs."

Phil Moorhouse is worth subscribing to and watching - a succinct summary (5 mins) of Putin's links to Musk's takeover (and destruction as a credible medium) of Twitter.
 
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