In one of the most anticipated sessions at the Cannes Lions Festival of Creativity, Elon Musk, the chief technology officer of X and Mark Read, the global CEO of WPP engaged in a conversation where Musk told Cannes Lions attendees that X in its current avatar is “worth trying out”. The discussion touched on several subjects, from Musk’s views on free speech to the future of AI and its impact on advertising.
Back in November, Musk stirred controversy by telling the advertising community to “go f*** themselves”. Musk clarified that his statement was not aimed at all advertisers but at those whom he thought were controlling content. “X is a global free speech platform. Some advertisers insisted on censorship. If there is a choice between censorship and making money or free speech within legal lines and losing money, I will support the latter. It is the right moral decision.”
Musk acknowledged that advertisers have the right to align their brand with compatible content but argued against the idea of demanding the absence of content they disagreed with, adding that X would not take money to censor.
When questioned about any social media posts he might have regretted later, Musk admitted to occasional missteps. “I do shoot myself in the foot from time to time, but at least you know it is genuine. Any normal human will often say things they will regret. If there is a constant filter, you are not being real. It is better to be real than behind a filter.”
The New X
Shifting the conversation to the role of advertising, Musk comes from a school of thought that sees advertising as a form of content. He articulated that effective advertising should be useful and relevant to the viewer. “When advertising works and is useful, like if you see an ad for a product you want or can buy, that is content. But if you see an ad for a product you are never going to buy, that is bad,” Musk said. He emphasised the importance of targeted advertising, describing the ultimate measure of success as whether viewers regret seeing the ad or find it valuable.
Musk also shared insights on how X (formerly Twitter) has evolved to improve ad targeting. He noted that the platform has significantly enhanced its ad-matching capabilities, transitioning to a fully AI-based system. This system treats content and ads equally, allowing both to be percolated down vectors that correlate user interests with relevant ads.
Message To Advertisers
Addressing the advertisers at Cannes Lions in context to X, Musk said, “It is worth trying out and I am interested in critical feedback. X is focused on showing ads to people who will find them interesting. We have made progress and will make more. Every third-party reviewer has given us an A-plus on brand safety.”
In addition to quoting the current user base numbers, Musk also highlighted that many influential decision-makers and intellectuals are active on X, making it the ideal platform for reaching an engaged and influential audience.
A Future Of Abundance
The conversation then turned to artificial intelligence (AI), a topic where Musk’s optimism and caution intertwined. He acknowledged the complexity of AI’s potential outcomes, aligning with Geoffrey Hinton’s perspective, which is on lines of the glass is “80 per cent full”. Musk envisioned a future where AI leads to an age of abundance, making goods and services available to everyone and rendering work optional. He speculated about an existential crisis akin to the peak of the Roman Empire, with AI performing tasks that humans might no longer need to do.
Musk’s concern for AI safety was a driving factor behind the creation of OpenAI, initially founded to counter Google’s dominance and ensure a focus on AI safety. However, he noted a shift in OpenAI's mission towards profit, diverging from its original intent.
On the creative potential of AI, Musk’s viewpoint might not be too favourable for creative professionals as he suggested that AI can do a better job of creativity. “AI will amplify creativity. You will have a magic genie situation. If you can think about it, AI can do it," Musk predicted. On a broader note, he suggested that AI could enhance human intelligence, with projects like Neuralink aiming for human-AI symbiosis.
A Different Future
The two leaders also discussed the rapid pace of change, Musk foresaw radical advancements in AI and robotics. He highlighted Optimus, Tesla’s fully functional humanoid robot and even envisioned a future where every household might have a personal robot, emphasising the positive impact such technology could have on daily life.
His ambitions extend beyond AI to space exploration. He reiterated SpaceX’s goal of making life multi-planetary. Musk also said he is driven by curiosity about the universe and the desire to ensure the survival of human consciousness.
Musk was not too positive about careers such as present-day creativity and conventional journalism, saying that journalists were publishing what they were reading on the internet. “The role of conventional journalism is becoming smaller. There is a case of real-time aggregation of the collective wisdom of millions of people on platforms such as X who are experts in the field and know more than the reporters or people on the field. There is a lot that is possible. And this is also one of the reasons why truth-seeking is so important in AI.”
In closing remarks, his advice to delegates at Cannes Lions was that people should make maximum use of AI, which is becoming better very rapidly and is immensely powerful.
