Musk’s influence on the United States has reached an unprecedented level. How will “Musk’s shadow rules” change the future development of global technology?
In late August, the New Yorker published an article “Elon Musk’s Shadow Rule“, in which Pulitzer Prize winner and investigative journalist Ronan Farrow pointed out, Musk’s influence on the United States is unprecedented.
As far as electric vehicles are concerned, Tesla has already invested heavily in building exclusive charging stations across the United States. Therefore, the Biden administration has changed its tune and no longer actively promotes the establishment of universal charging stations as it did in the past. As long as Tesla is willing to adapt and make its charging stations compatible with other charging standards, it can receive billions of dollars in government subsidies.
Popular Technology Event 1:
The Ukrainian war broke out, low-orbit satellites became the focus of global attention, and SpaceX Starlink satellites affected geopolitics
Musk invested US$100 million of his personal funds to establish SpaceX in 2002. The company built two launch pads and the first rocket within three and a half years of its establishment. With the steady growth of its rocket launch business, SpaceX launched the Starlink project (Starlink) paid service in 2019 to provide network communication services by launching low-orbit satellites.
After the war in Ukraine broke out, Starlink satellites instantly became the focus of global attention, and governments began to realize the importance of low-orbit satellites. Because of the strategic value of low-orbit satellites, Musk and SpaceX are inevitably involved in geopolitical disputes. The Starlink project has become another important source of revenue for SpaceX.
According to the New York Times, SpaceX has launched more than 4,200 Starlink satellites so far, accounting for 53% of all active satellites around the earth. More than 50 countries or territories use Starlink satellite services.
Popular Technology Event 2:
Tesla changes the rules of the automobile industry and ranks first in the global electric vehicle market
After the epidemic, the global output value of electric vehicles has grown significantly. The latest figures released by TrendForce in mid-August show that global sales of pure electric vehicles in the second quarter of this year were 2.15 million units, a 39% increase from the same period last year. Ranking first is Tesla, with a market share of 21.8% (higher than the 16.6% market share in 2022).
Musk has served as Tesla’s CEO since 2008. In addition to being the company’s largest shareholder, Musk is also actually involved in the design of new cars and the transformation of the production process. He led Tesla out of the supply chain crisis and launched the Roadster, the world’s first mass-produced electric sports car, in 2008, completely breaking the outside world’s stereotype that electric cars are slow and bulky.
In 2012, the Tesla Model S was selected as Car of the Year by Motor Trend. In October 2021, Tesla became the first automobile company with a market value exceeding US$1 trillion. Although the stock price has fluctuated this year, the performance has continued to grow. According to the New York Times, Tesla’s global vehicle delivery volume reached 466,000 vehicles from April to June this year, a significant increase of 83% over the same period last year.
Popular Technology Event 3:
Following the emergence of ChatGPT, Musk established X.AI with the ultimate goal of developing “general artificial intelligence”
In November 2022, ChatGPT was born, setting off a craze around the world.
OpenAI, which developed ChatGPT, was established by Musk and current CEO Sam Altman in 2015 as a non-profit organization.
Musk quit OpenAI in 2018 and continues to promote artificial intelligence projects in his own company. In July this year, Musk announced the establishment of a new artificial intelligence company, X.AI, to create an alternative to ChatGPT. Through competition with OpenAI, it will promote the positive development of artificial intelligence. The ultimate goal in the future is to develop “general artificial intelligence.”
