Four of the wildest ideas from Tesla's Elon Musk
It's safe to say Elon Musk is not afraid to think big.
The CEO of electric car maker Tesla and aeronautics firm SpaceX recently revealed details of a new endeavor: serving as chief executive of Neuralink, which is working to bring together computer tech with the human brain.
It's one of several bold ideas envisioned by Musk, when he's not working on self-driving electric cars or trying to outfit homes with solar panels. Here's a look at some of his big plans:
Using computers with your brain
The idea behind melding the human brain with computers surfaced during 2016's Code Conference, when he suggested artificial intelligence could advance to point where humans would be like house cats (so does that mean robots would share GIFs of us for humor?)
In April, Musk confirmed he would serve as CEO of Neuralink, a company working on a neural interface. The implant would work with the brain to augment its capabilities. Early uses of the product would go to people suffering from brain injuries tied to strokes or other ailments, said Musk, before being made available to the public.
Why everyone should be thinking about Mars
We could live there one day. Not only does Musk have a project for when humans will set foot on Mars (it's 2025), but he's already thought out details on colonizing.
How will Earthlings will be able to live on Mars? Musk says warming the planet up could melt its ice and create a more hospitable atmosphere. Ships traveling to Mars would be powered by a slush methane and would need 30 days to arrive. And no, it wouldn't have to be a one-way trip.
Not out of the question: Making pizza on the Red Planet.
The Hyperloop will zip you from LA to SF in 30 minutes
So it doesn't take 30 days to travel from Los Angeles to San Francisco, but depending on how you try to make the trip, it can sure feel like it. By car, it can take roughly 6 hours, or between 1-2 hours by plane.
Musk's proposed Hyperloop transportation system would get travelers between the two California cities in 30 minutes, using magnetic levitation technology. Although Musk isn't working directly on this initiative, several companies, including Hyperloop One, are securing funding to bring the travel system to life. Meanwhile, earlier this year, Musk's SpaceX offered its services to 27 teams to attempt to build prototypes of pods used in a Hyperloop system.
Oh, and we could all be living in a computer simulation
Musk is not ruling out the possibility we're living in some form of The Matrix, where life is essentially a giant computer simulation. He cites improvements in video games from Pong to today, and suggests nearly lifelike graphics will make games “indistinguishable from reality.” It's a philosophical concept Musk thinks about a lot. “I've had so many simulation discussions, it's crazy.”
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