The biography "Elon Musk" was released worldwide on September 13th. The biography begins with the following words from Musk himself. Book "Elon Musk": "I have redesigned the electric car. I am trying to send people to Mars in a spaceship. Do you really think that a person who does such things is normal?" It was written by Walter Isaacson. Biographer Isaacson: "I asked him to interview me closely for two years, including all meetings, and to my surprise, he said "OK". (Q: Was it difficult for you during those two years?) It was not like a relaxing interview on the beach drinking a cold beer, but a constant tense atmosphere. If you ask, "Does Musk enjoy his work?" the answer is NO." This time, Isaacson spoke to not only Musk himself, but 128 people related to him, and completed the biography. There is also a testimony from Musk's partner who has repeatedly broken up and gotten back together. Book "Elon Musk": "He's bad at reading the mood, and his emotional understanding is very different from normal people. And he switches between these modes with incredible speed. Devil mode brings about tremendous chaos. At the same time, it also brings results." "Devil mode" is Elon Musk's deep dark and aggressive side. While it hurts many people, it was also the driving force that turned risk into success. Biographer Isaacson: "(Q. I read your book and was overwhelmed by Musk's lack of fear of risk. I think there is an important lesson there for a rigid and overly organized society.) He is a person who is willing to take risks. I think this is important. As you say, he is not only willing to take risks, but he likes risks. It is one of the factors that led him to success. I think it is good to have someone like Musk in the sense that he guides us in the direction of taking risks." Elon Musk, who has been successful with Tesla and other companies, has chosen to take a new risk by acquiring Twitter. Isaacson was right next to him watching the whole thing. Biographer Isaacson: "(Q: Was the Twitter acquisition a good move?) I can't say. He himself enjoyed tweeting as his 'ideal playground,' but while he understood engineering and physical reactions, he lacked the talent for emotions and social interaction. He couldn't meet advertisers' expectations." After the acquisition, aggressive posts became a problem, and advertising dropped sharply. Concerns about the vast amounts of data being collected through Twitter, now known as 'X,' have not disappeared. Biographer Isaacson: "He cannot control his impulses and is childish and lashes out. He does this when his heart is in the 'shadow'. I wish I could put an 'impulse control button' on his thumb to stop him from posting malicious posts. However, I wrote in my biography: 'If we could suppress impulse posts on Twitter with a suppression button, would there be someone who could put a rocket into orbit? A free and unconstrained Musk may be the price we pay for the era of Mars and electric vehicles.' However, I don't think Musk's words and actions are acceptable." During the two years of close coverage, there was another turning point in history: his involvement in Ukraine. In 2022, Elon Musk will be deeply involved in Ukraine. Starlink, which allows Internet access anywhere on the planet, was a lifeline for Ukraine, whose communications infrastructure had been destroyed by Russia. Biographer Isaacson: "Musk, who aspires to be a superhero, was asked by the Ukrainian government to help them, saying, 'We've lost communication with the military, and we're going to lose. We need your help.' We provided 100, 200, 1,000 Starlink antennas free of charge, enabling communication with the military, and supporting the resistance in the first week of the full-scale invasion." However, one day, he was forced to make a major decision. Book: "Elon Musk": "Musk sent a message saying, 'This could be a disaster.' The Ukrainian military was planning to send six unmanned submarines loaded with explosives via Starlink to surprise the Russian Navy stationed in Sevastopol, Crimea." Elon Musk believed that the attack on Crimea would lead to a nuclear war. "Starlink's contribution to escalation" was not acceptable. Elon Musk book: "Why should I get involved in this war?" Musk complained to me on a late-night phone call. "Starlink is not for war. It's for people to relax and watch Netflix or do their school work online or do good, peaceful things, not for drone attacks." Starlink was cut off and the Ukrainian surprise attack failed. Biographer Isaacson: "The power to decide the success or failure of the sneak attack was in his hands. Too much power for one person to handle. I'm glad we have Elon Musk, who created the Starlink communications system. Not just for the Ukrainian military, but for hospitals, media, schools. It's a communications system that the Russian military can't block, and no company or country could develop it. I was very surprised. (It seems that Q technology has become so powerful that it is inseparable from politics and international relations.) When we look at technology, we are faced with the question, 'Can we deal with it morally?' 'Are we keeping up with new technology?' We should be wrestling with the moral implications of technology. This is true for social media, life sciences, gene editing tools, Starlink satellites, and the Internet. To regulate them, to consider them, to understand their moral aspects, we must understand the technology and its developers, at least to some extent." Isaacson has published many books focusing on people who have reshaped the times. What do they have in common? Biographer Isaacson: "Cheers to the crazies, the misfits, the rebels, the nails that stick out! Who are we talking about? Da Vinci, the young gay man from the village of Venice. Einstein, who grew up Jewish in Germany. Jobs, who grew up as an adopted child feeling out of place. Elon Musk, who suffered childhood trauma in South Africa. Japan, Paris, New Orleans, wherever you are, you can change the world. The lesson is that sometimes it's necessary to believe in big things. Even if you're not as reckless as Elon Musk, it might be good to make an effort to understand the "good driving force" that led many people, such as Musk and Jobs, to success." [TV Asahi News] https://news.tv-asahi.co.jp