Getting into the minds of Silicon Valley elites is rarely simple, however a Slovenian political scientist lately tried to “sketch out a fascinating few fundamentals” about three outstanding billionaires.
Samo Burja, president of the political threat consultancy Bismarck Analysis, shared his ideas about Tesla CEO Elon Musk, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, and tech investor Peter Thiel on the inaugural episode of the Live Players podcast launched this week. Burja describes “stay gamers” as individuals who step away from norms, improvise, and suppose from first rules, saying such people are instrumental to stopping societal stagnation.
Burja stated that upon listening to the widespread knowledge, Altman’s response is likely to be “sure, and” whereas Thiel’s could be “no, however.” As for Musk, Burja laughed, “I don’t suppose Elon’s even listening.”
Altman, he stated, will “see the place the keenness and power lies, and it’s like, ‘Okay can we harness this and even additional develop it, even develop this and push it someplace actual.’ He sees cryptocurrencies, and he’s like, what about…a coin for the world that adjustments the world financial system to arrange for the post-scarcity future.”
He cited Worldcoin, which Altman cofounded a couple of years in the past. The concept behind the startup is that folks will be capable to show their personhood in an internet world that could possibly be quickly be overrun by AI bots. They’ll do that by scanning their irises utilizing a shiny metallic orb. When you’re scanned, verified, and onboarded, you’re given some proprietary crypto tokens, additionally referred to as Worldcoins. Later the system might turn into a option to implement common primary revenue, an concept that may acquire traction if AI results in large-scale unemployment. Worldcoin, maybe not surprisingly, has sparked widespread privateness considerations.
As for Musk, Burja continued, “Elon’s perspective is so first-principles pushed that whereas he does acknowledge what’s in style and never and may work with it, his choices as to what to do subsequent aren’t tied in any respect to the mainstream however are following, I don’t know, like a know-how tree chart derived from primary physics or his favourite science fiction story.”
Musk, he stated, will go straight into an trade that’s broadly thought-about hopeless, too crowded, or too mature—similar to electrical automobiles or house—“however have it work this time.”
To make one thing like Tesla succeed as Musk did, he stated, “you would need to consider it not phrases of automobile firms, however the uncooked power potential of batteries…the batteries maintain getting higher, so logically ultimately a automobile firm would work.”
Musk offered insights into how he thinks about physics versus engineering in a latest episode of the Lex Fridman Podcast, saying: “Physics is simply deepening one’s perception into how actuality works. Then there’s engineering, which is inventing issues which have by no means existed…Once you determine the foundations of the universe…you may then construct applied sciences which are actually nearly limitless.”
As for Thiel, Burja continued, “Thiel’s query is ‘How is the mainstream incorrect and what can we do about it to make it appropriate?’ Which makes him an incredible know-how investor—an incredible technologist, but in addition an incredible investor.”
Thiel, he stated, “is extraordinarily good at noticing when the widespread consensus is appropriate or incorrect for mainly unhealthy causes—and I do embrace appropriate right here—the place everytime you suppose that even when individuals are directionally making the best wager for the incorrect causes, there’s some, you understand, monetary alpha there, there’s some chance of discovering that distinction.”
Thiel, a conservative libertarian who’s donated closely to right-wing politicians, is thought for making daring swings on uncommon concepts. He was satisfied effectively earlier than most individuals that funds would go digital and Bitcoin would take off, and he wrote a $500,000 examine to a Harvard pupil on one thing referred to as “Thefacebook.” Subscribe to the CEO Daily publication to get the CEO perspective on the most important headlines in enterprise. Sign up without spending a dime.
https://fortune.com/2023/12/03/elon-musk-sam-altman-peter-thiel-mindsets-samo-burja/
