Tesla’s billionaire CEO ,TSLA, defines himself as one of the most ardent defenders of free speech. He said that protecting freedom of expression was one of the reasons he made a $44 billion bid for microblogging website Twitter ,TWTR, ,
(He has withdrawn the offer, but Manch is fighting him, and a trial is scheduled for mid-October.)
At the same time, Beijing is regularly criticized for its censorship and control over all dissent. How to reconcile these two opposite viewpoints?
It’s the balancing act that Musk must perform. China is a key market for Tesla as it seeks to dominate the global electric-vehicle market. Tesla is currently the industry leader in the production and sale of EVs.
Musk wrote an article for a magazine run by China’s main censor
Perhaps unsurprisingly, Musk has decided not to isolate Chinese officials, a decision he is often criticized for. It goes without saying, that he would criticize him for writing an article for China Cyberspace magazine, which is run by China’s Cyberspace Administration, the country’s internet regulator and censors.
As an example of the agency’s scope, in April 2021, according to Reuters, the CAC launched a hotline to report any online remarks made against the Chinese Communist Party.
Musk’s op-ed column also comes as tensions between the US and China remain high due to the visit of US lawmakers to Taiwan, including House Speaker Nancy Pelosi.
In this article, published in the July edition of the magazine, Musk sets out his vision for the future: of a world in which technology will help ensure humanity’s future.
The column titled “Believe in Technology for a Better Future” was translated into English by Yang Liu, a journalist from the Chinese State Press Agency, Xinhua. The journalist posted it on his Substack newsletter, the Beijing Channel. You can read it here.
Musk explains that the magazine proposed that he write the piece. In other words, it was not his initiative. The tech titan also appears to have said that he was put in a difficult position and that he could not deliberately refuse, at the risk of alienating Chinese officials.
The world’s richest man said, “Thank you for the invitation from China Cyberspace Magazine. I am delighted to share some of my thoughts on technology and humanity’s vision with my Chinese friends.”
Tesla has a factory in Shanghai. The factory is key to the EV maker’s global ambitions. Its temporary shutdown in March and April due to the lockdown certainly affects Tesla’s production and deliveries.
In a sign of his importance, Musk celebrated this factory’s one millionth vehicle in August with a tweet: “Congratulations to Giga Shanghai on building the millionth car! Total Teslas now exceed 3 million.”
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Before Musk, Zuckerberg also saluted Beijing
Musk is not the first CEO of an American multinational to take drastic measures to avoid isolating Beijing. Mark Zuckerberg, CEO of social-media giant Meta Platforms ,meta, (Facebook, WhatsApp and Instagram), and Sundar Pichai, CEO of Alphabet (Google) ,Google, Have tried this balancing act in the past.
A few years ago, when Facebook was aggressively expanding around the world, Zuckerberg made China his No. 1 priority. The social network was banned by Chinese authorities in 2009, and Zuckerberg wanted to lift that ban.
It was a golden opportunity for Facebook to return to the Chinese market. Thus Zuckerberg multiplied his efforts to establish relations with Beijing. For example, he gave a speech in Mandarin at Tsinghua University in 2015.
He took pride in making it clear that he read Chinese literature.
But despite his efforts, the Chinese market has remained closed to Facebook, and Zuckerberg has since become one of the strongest critics of Chinese censorship.
musk pillar
“I want to do everything possible to maximize the use of technology to help achieve a better future for humanity,” Musk wrote in his column. “To that end, any sector that contributes to a sustainable future is worthy of our investment.”
“Whether it’s Tesla, Neuralink, or SpaceX, all of these companies were founded with the ultimate goal of enhancing the future of human life and creating as much practical value for the world as possible – Tesla’s mission to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy.” For Medical Rehabilitation, SpaceX to Make Interstellar Connections Possible for Neuralink.”
The entrepreneur then explained in detail the various objectives and ambitions of his companies.
“Electrified transportation. Complete electrification of transportation, including cars, planes and ships. Electric rockets may be more difficult, but we may be able to manufacture the propellant used in rockets from sustainable energy sources. Ultimately, the world economy as a whole drove by sustainable energy sources.”
Musk sugar open for partnership
Musk also spoke about Tesla’s progress in developing humanoid robots and confirmed that Tesla intends to launch the first of these bots this year.
“Thereafter, the usefulness of humanoid robots will increase annually as production increases and costs fall. In the future, a home robot may be cheaper than a car. Perhaps in less than a decade, people will be buying robots for their parents.” Will be able to. As a birthday gift,” said the billionaire.
Then he repeated one of his great dreams: to conquer Mars.
“In the future, we plan to build at least 1,000 starships to send a group of pioneers to build a self-sustaining city on Mars,” Musk wrote.
He concludes by saying that he is ready to partner with Chinese entities:
“I hope more people will join our fight to accelerate the world’s transition to sustainable energy. I look forward to joining like-minded Chinese in the pursuit of clean energy, artificial intelligence, human-machine collaboration and space exploration.” I also welcome partners. A future worth waiting for.”
In the same July issue, there are also columns from local CEOs, including Ant Group chairman Eric Jing.