Elon Musk's xAl goes after OpenAI
The fight is turning nasty
Nov 27th 2024
An underappreciated force behind great technological change is intense — and petty — rivalry. In the "war of the currents" in the late 19th century, Thomas Edison electrocuted stray animals to discredit Nikola Tesla. A century later, Steve Jobs traded insults with Bill Gates during a battle between Apple and Microsoft. Even Silicon Valley, a satirical HBO series, starts with a feud — and the priceless quip: "These are billionaires, Richard. Humiliating each other is worth more to them than we will make in a lifetime."
In the world of generative artificial intelligence (AI), the scrap between Elon Musk and Sam Altman is in the same league. It is both silly and captivating. Silly because they insult each other, try to discredit each other's chatbots and fight over who meant what almost a decade ago when they co-founded OpenAI. Captivating because, fuelled by grievance, Mr Musk has created xAI, maker of a series of large language models (LLMs) called Grok. It has its sights set on OpenAI, now run by Mr Altman, which became wildly successful with the release of ChatGPT two years ago. While OpenAI was last valued at $157bn, xAI, which is less than two years old, is already reported to be worth $50bn.
Though some investors resent the way Mr Musk takes from one company to give to another, he argues that xAI will ultimately help him realise his dream of creating autonomous cars, "robotaxis" and humanoid robots. Such ambitions may help xAI get its hands on scarce GPUs because Jensen Huang, Nvidia's boss, shares Mr Musk's sense of higher purpose. "What Elon is doing is so cutting-edge. Jensen loves that," says Umesh Padval of Thomvest Ventures, a venture-capital (VC) firm.
Yet compared with OpenAI, xAI is still an underdog. OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft — though strained at times — gives it access to infrastructure not even the world's richest man can match: Microsoft's capital expenditures, mostly on GPUs and data centres, are expected to exceed $150bn in 2024–25. Combining the products it sells directly to its customers with those sold via Microsoft gives OpenAI a roughly 70% share of the LLM market. That is still a big lead.
The risk is that Mr Musk turns what should be robust corporate competition into a knife fight. Earlier in November, he filed an amended lawsuit — the third version this year — against OpenAI and its backers, with xAI as a plaintiff and Microsoft as a defendant for the first time.
It repeats accusations that Mr Altman and his co-defendants abandoned a non-profit, safety-first mission, partly funded by Mr Musk, in order to get rich. OpenAI disputes this. The suit's latest allegations are that OpenAI and Microsoft hobbled competition by restricting OpenAI's investors from putting money into AI rivals and through what it calls a de facto merger. In January, the Federal Trade Commission, an antitrust body, launched an inquiry into Microsoft's ties with OpenAI, as part of a broad look at AI investments. Some OpenAI investors fear that Mr Musk could use his influence with President-elect Donald Trump to encourage the FTC to dig deeper.
In fact, America's technological edge would be best served by both firms slugging it out in the marketplace, not by either of them pulling political or geopolitical strings. In the meantime, all the elements are in place for a blockbuster remake of Silicon Valley for the AI era.
- nasty adj. 令人不快的，令人讨厌的，恶劣的，充满敌意的
- underappreciated adj.：未得到正确评价的；未受到充分赏识（或欣赏）的
- petty adj.：英 /ˈpeti/, 美 /ˈpeti/ 小规模的；小气的；琐碎的
- petty cash: a small amount of cash on hand
- narrow-minded, trivial of little importance
- a petty argument
- rivalry n.：英 /ˈraɪvlri/, 美 /ˈraɪvlri/ 竞争；竞赛；对抗
- execute：执行，处决
- electr: 表示 “电” 的词根
- Electrocute v.: ：英 /ɪ'lektrəkjuːt/，美 /ɪˈlɛktrəˌkjut/
- (美)处电刑，触电致死
- stray： 流浪，走失，离群
- stray cats, stray dogs
- The whole thing just strayed off course.
- 整个事情已经偏离方向了。
- discredit （v.）使...丧失信誉，丧失名眷，败坏名声
- Modern genetic research has largely discredited these ideas.
- 现代基因研究已经让这些想法站不住脚了。
- Both the presidency and Congress are widely discredited and are perceived as corrupted institutions.
- 总统和国会都受到广泛质疑，被视为腐败机构。
- Modern genetic research has largely discredited these ideas.
- satirical adj. 含讽刺意味的，嘲讽的
- satirical adj. 英 /sə'tɪrɪk(ə)l/, 美 /sə'tɪrɪkl/
- sarcastic adj. 英 /sɑːˈkæstɪk/, 美 /sɑːrˈkæstɪk/
- satirical novels 讽刺小说
- satire n.：英 /ˈsætaɪə(r)/, 美 /ˈsætaɪər/ 讽刺,讥讽
- feud n.: 英 /fjuːd/, 美 /fjʊd/ 长期的争执，敌对关系，世仇，a long-standing fight, often between two families
- The feud between the two families has been going on for years.
- 这两个家族之间的敌对关系已经持续了多年。
- The feud between the two families has been going on for years.
- quip: 英 /kwɪp/, 美 /kwɪp/
- a quip is a short, witty comment.俏皮话。妙语
- She always has a quip ready to make everyone laugh.
- 她总是迅速捕捉到有趣的语言点而引得大家开怀大笑。
- scrap n.: 英 /skræp/, 美 /skræp/ 废料，残余，残片
- 废弃，取消，拋弃，类似于 abandon, discard
- I scribbled her address on a scrap of paper. 英 /ˈskrɪbl/,美 /ˈskrɪbl/
- 我在一小片纸上记下她的地址。
- Two dogs had a scrap. 两只狗打起来了。
- in the same league: 处于同一档次，同一级别
- They're in the same league as the French at making wine.
- 他们酿葡萄酒的技术跟法国人不相上下。
- Oh, I thought she is way out of my league.
- They're in the same league as the French at making wine.
- captivate v. 英 /ˈkæptɪveɪt/, 美 /ˈkæptɪveɪt/ 使入迷，使着迷
- captivate vs capture
- The allure and charm of Paris captivate all who visit there.
- allure 英 /əˈlʊə(r)/, 美 /əˈlʊr/
- 巴黎的诱惑与魅力令所有到此游玩的人深深着迷。
- He was captivated by her beauty.
- 他为她的美貌所迷惑。
- grievance n.: 抱怨，牢骚，委屈，不公
- 英 /ˈɡriːvəns/, 美 /ˈɡriːvəns/
- n. 委屈, 苦衷, 不满, 怨恨
- The trade union leader spoke about the grievances of the workers.
- Are you holding on to petty grievances?
- 你在紧抓着小肚鸡肠的事不放吗？
- resent means feel bitter or indignant about sth. 对什么感到愤怒，厌恶，反感
- We resented her bossy manner.
- 我们不喜欢她专橫的态度。
- We resented her bossy manner.
- autonomous: 自动的，无需人为干预的，
- Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark.
- 格陵兰岛是丹麦的自治领土。
- automous driving 自动驾驶
- Greenland is an autonomous territory of Denmark.
- Humanoid adj. 像人的
- 英 /'hjuːmənɒɪd/, 美 /'hjʊmə'nɔɪd/
- underdog （n.）弱者，处于劣势的人或者团队
- Anyone at a disadvantage, whether in general or in a particular situation, can be called an underdog.
- strain （v.） 使什么变得紧绷，紧张，给什么造成压力
- I strained myself so bad today.
- 我今天扭伤了。
- Paying the mortage strains household finances and crimps consumer spending.
- 还货压力抑制了家庭经济，束缚了消费者的购买力。
- They put such strains on a team.
- 她们给团队带来压力。
- Plaintiff （n.） 原告 英 /ˈpleɪntɪf/, 美 /ˈpleɪntɪf/
- defendant （n.） 被告
- accusation n.：控告，指控
- allegation n.指控，控告，断言
- 英 /ˌæləˈɡeɪʃn/, 美 /ˌæləˈɡeɪʃn/
- n. 陈述，宣称，辩解；陈词
- hobble （v.）跛行。跛脚，limp
- High taxes are hobbling economic growth.
- 高税收限制了经济增长。
- The company is being hobbled by heavy regulations.
- 公司受到繁重的法规限制。
- High taxes are hobbling economic growth.
- de facto （adj.，）(拉)实际上的，事实上的
- He has been the de facto leader since Rwanda's 1994 genocide. 英 /'dʒenəsaɪd/ 美 /'dʒɛnəsaɪd/
- 自 1994 年卢旺达种族灭绝以来，他一直是实际领导人。
- He has been the de facto leader since Rwanda's 1994 genocide. 英 /'dʒenəsaɪd/ 美 /'dʒɛnəsaɪd/
- antitrust （adj，） 反垄断的 英 /æntɪ'trʌst/, 美 /ˌæntɪ'trʌst/
- edge: : n.边缘；刀刃；
- 优势；锋利， advantage
- If you have an edge over someone, think of yourself as a little sharper because you have the advantage.
- cutting-edge
- slug v. 重击
- slug it out：一決雌雄，分出个高下
- It is a place where people go to slug it out with all their talents and all their energies.
- 在这里，人们可以用他们所有的才能和所有的能量来一决高下。
- puill the strings： 用来比喻那些在幕后操纵，掌控事情的人或者行沟。
- Make sure he knows who pulled the strings.
- 让他知道谁才是背后老大。
- Make sure he knows who pulled the strings.
[English] - An underappreciated force behind great technological change is intense — and petty — rivalry. In the "war of the currents" in the late 19th century, Thomas Edison electrocuted stray animals to discredit Nikola Tesla. A century later, Steve Jobs traded insults with Bill Gates during a battle between Apple and Microsoft. Even Silicon Valley, a satirical HBO series, starts with a feud — and the priceless quip: "These are billionaires, Richard. Humiliating each other is worth more to them than we will make in a lifetime."
[Chinese] - 在伟大技术变革的背后，有一种被低估的推动力：激烈且琐碎的竞争。在 19 世纪末的“电流战争”中，托马斯·爱迪生电击流浪动物来诋毁尼古拉·特斯拉。一个世纪后，史蒂夫·乔布斯与比尔·盖茨在苹果与微软的较量中互相讥讽。甚至连 HBO 的讽刺剧《硅谷》也以一场争斗开篇——其中一句经典台词是：“理查德，他们是亿万富翁，羞辱彼此对他们来说比我们一辈子赚的钱还值钱。”
在重大的技术变革背后，有一种被低估的力量，那就是激烈且琐碎的竞争。在 19 世纪末的“电流大战”中，托马斯·爱迪生电击流浪动物以诋毁尼古拉·特斯拉。一个世纪后，史蒂夫·乔布斯在苹果与微软之战中与比尔·盖茨互相讽刺。甚至连讽刺性的 HBO 剧集《硅谷》也是以一场争斗开场，并有一句经典台词：“他们可是亿万富翁，羞辱彼此比我们一辈子赚的钱还值钱。”
[English] - In the world of generative artificial intelligence (AI), the scrap between Elon Musk and Sam Altman is in the same league. It is both silly and captivating — silly because they insult each other, try to discredit each other's chatbots, and fight over who meant what almost a decade ago when they co-founded OpenAI; captivating because, fueled by grievance, Mr. Musk has created xAI, maker of a series of large language models (LLMs) called Grok. It has its sights set on OpenAI, now run by Mr. Altman, which became wildly successful with the release of ChatGPT two years ago. While OpenAI was last valued at $157bn, xAI, which is less than two years old, is already reported to be worth $50bn.
[Chinese] - 在生成式人工智能（AI）的世界里，埃隆·马斯克和山姆·奥特曼之间的争斗也属于同一等级。这场争斗既可笑又引人入胜。可笑的是，他们互相辱骂、试图抹黑对方的聊天机器人，并争论将近十年前共同创办 OpenAI 时谁真正意图为何。引人入胜的是，在怨恨驱使下，马斯克创立了 xAI，这家公司开发了一系列名为 Grok 的大型语言模型（LLMs），并以 OpenAI 为目标，后者如今由奥特曼掌舵，在两年前推出 ChatGPT 后大获成功。虽然 OpenAI 的最新估值为 1570 亿美元，但成立还不到两年的 xAI 据称估值已达 500 亿美元。
在生成式人工智能（AI）领域，埃隆·马斯克与山姆·奥特曼之间的纷争堪比当年的“电流大战”，同样既可笑又引人入胜。可笑之处在于，两人互相羞辱，试图贬低对方的聊天机器人，甚至为他们将近十年前共同创办 OpenAI 时的初衷争得不可开交。 这场纷争之所以引人入胜，是因为在不满情绪的驱使下，马斯克创立了 xAI——一家推出了名为 Grok 的一系列大型语言模型（LLMs）的公司。xAI 的目标直指由奥特曼掌舵的 OpenAI，而 OpenAI 自两年前推出 ChatGPT 后便取得了巨大成功。尽管 OpenAI 最新估值高达 1570 亿美元，但成立还不到两年的 xAI，据称估值已达 500 亿美元。
[English] - Though some investors resent the way Mr Musk takes from one company to give to another, he argues that xAI will ultimately help him realize his dream of creating autonomous cars, "robotaxis" and humanoid robots. Such ambitions may help xAI get its hands on scarce GPUs because Jensen Huang, Nvidia's boss, shares Mr Musk's sense of higher purpose. "What Elon is doing is so cutting-edge. Jensen loves that," says Umesh Padval of Thomvest Ventures, a venture-capital (VC) firm.
[Chinese] - 尽管一些投资者对马斯克“拆东墙补西墙”的做法表示不满，但他坚称 xAI 最终会帮助他实现打造自动驾驶汽车、“机器人出租车”以及人形机器人的梦想。这些宏伟的目标可能有助于 xAI 获得稀缺的 GPU 资源，因为英伟达的掌门人黄仁勋也认同马斯克追求更高目标的理念。“埃隆做的事情非常前沿，黄仁勋对此非常热衷，”风投公司 Thomvest Ventures 的乌梅什·帕德瓦尔如是说。
尽管一些投资者对马斯克“从一家公司抽调资源去支持另一家公司”的做法感到不满，但他坚称 xAI 最终会帮助他实现打造自动驾驶汽车、“机器人出租车”和人形机器人的梦想。这样的雄心可能会帮助 xAI 获得稀缺的 GPU 资源，因为英伟达的 CEO 黄仁勋与马斯克一样，拥有推动人类发展的使命感。风投公司 Thomvest Ventures 的乌梅什·帕德瓦尔表示：“埃隆正在做的事情非常前沿，简森非常喜欢。”
[English] - Yet compared with OpenAI, xAI is still an underdog. OpenAI's partnership with Microsoft — though strained at times — gives it access to infrastructure not even the world's richest man can match: Microsoft's capital expenditures, mostly on GPUs and data centres, are expected to exceed $150bn in 2024–25. Combining the products it sells directly to its customers with those sold via Microsoft gives OpenAI a roughly 70% share of the LLM market. That is still a big lead.
[Chinese] - 然而，与 OpenAI 相比，xAI 仍然是一个弱者。OpenAI 与微软的合作关系——尽管有时也存在紧张——使其能够获得连世界首富都无法匹敌的基础设施：微软在 GPU 和数据中心方面的资本支出预计在 2024 到 2025 年将超过 1500 亿美元。将其直接向客户销售的产品与通过微软销售的产品相结合，OpenAI 大约占据了大型语言模型市场约 70%的份额。这仍然是一个巨大的领先优势。
然而，与 OpenAI 相比，xAI 仍然是一个不起眼的挑战者。OpenAI 与微软的合作关系——尽管有时也会出现紧张——使其能够获取连全球首富都难以匹敌的基础设施：微软在 GPU 和数据中心方面的资本支出预计在 2024 至 2025 年将超过 1500 亿美元。将其直接销售给客户的产品与通过微软销售的产品合并计算，OpenAI 在大型语言模型（LLM）市场中大约占有 70% 的份额。这个领先优势仍然非常显著。
[English] - The risk is that Mr Musk turns what should be robust corporate competition into a knife fight. Earlier in November, he filed an amended lawsuit — the third version this year — against OpenAI and its backers, with xAI as a plaintiff and Microsoft as a defendant for the first time.
[Chinese] - 风险在于，马斯克可能将本应是正常企业竞争的事情变成一场刀光剑影的斗争。今年 11 月初，他提交了一份修订后的诉讼，这是他今年第三次起诉 OpenAI 及其支持者，且这一次首次将 xAI 列为原告，并将微软列为被告。
风险在于，马斯克可能把本应是正常的企业竞争变成一场近身肉搏战。今年 11 月早些时候，他提交了一份修改后的诉讼案——这是他今年第三次修改诉状——起诉对象为 OpenAI 及其支持者，而这也是首次将 xAI 作为原告、微软作为被告。
[English] - It repeats accusations that Mr Altman and his co-defendants abandoned a non-profit, safety-first mission, partly funded by Mr Musk, in order to get rich. OpenAI disputes this. The suit's latest allegations are that OpenAI and Microsoft hobbled competition by restricting OpenAI's investors from putting money into AI rivals and through what it calls a de facto merger. In January, the Federal Trade Commission, an antitrust body, launched an inquiry into Microsoft's ties with OpenAI, as part of a broad look at AI investments. Some OpenAI investors fear that Mr Musk could use his influence with President-elect Donald Trump to encourage the FTC to dig deeper.
[Chinese] - 这起诉讼重复了此前的指控，称奥特曼及其共同被告背弃了一个以安全为先、非营利为宗旨的使命，而该使命部分由马斯克资助，目的是为了谋取私利。OpenAI 对此表示反对。最新的指控称，OpenAI 与微软削弱了市场竞争，一方面限制 OpenAI 投资者向其他 AI 竞争对手投资，另一方面通过所谓“事实上的合并”来操控市场。今年 1 月，反垄断机构联邦贸易委员会（FTC）启动了对微软与 OpenAI 关系的调查，这是其更广泛审查 AI 投资的一部分。一些 OpenAI 的投资者担心，马斯克可能会利用他对当选总统唐纳德·特朗普的影响力，推动 FTC 进一步深入调查。
诉讼重申了此前的指控，称奥特曼及其共同被告背弃了最初“非营利、以安全为先”的使命——这一使命曾部分由马斯克资助——目的是为了牟利。OpenAI 对此提出异议。诉讼中最新的指控称，OpenAI 和微软通过限制 OpenAI 投资者向其他 AI 竞争对手投资，以及所谓的“事实上的合并”，阻碍了市场竞争。 今年 1 月，美国反垄断机构——联邦贸易委员会（FTC） 启动了一项调查，审查微软与 OpenAI 的关系，此举是对 AI 投资进行更广泛审视的一部分。一些 OpenAI 的投资者担心，马斯克可能会利用他与候任总统唐纳德·特朗普的关系，促使 FTC 进一步深入调查。
[English] - In fact, America's technological edge would be best served by both firms slugging it out in the marketplace, not by either of them pulling political or geopolitical strings. In the meantime, all the elements are in place for a blockbuster remake of Silicon Valley for the AI era.
[Chinese] - 事实上，美国在技术上的领先地位最好由这两家公司在市场上正面对决来维持，而不是靠它们任何一方操纵政治或地缘政治手段。与此同时，AI 时代版的《硅谷》大片翻拍所需的所有要素已经齐备。
事实上，美国在技术上的领先地位，最好的保障是这两家公司在市场上正面较量，而不是任何一方操纵政治或地缘政治力量。与此同时，一部为 AI 时代量身打造的《硅谷》重磅翻拍片，所需的所有元素都已经就位。