In the heart of New York City’s Times Square, an enormous inflatable effigy of billionaire Elon Musk loomed over passersby. The sculpture was surrounded by banners accusing Grok, a tool owned by Musk, of generating child pornographic images.
The demonstration, led by Safe AI Now (SAIN), a coalition of concerned citizens and experts, took place just days before SpaceX's initial public offering. Strategically placed near Nasdaq and JP Morgan, the protest aimed to highlight the potential dangers posed by AI tools like Grok which have been linked to the creation of explicit content.
SAIN representatives argue that the IPO is a liability shift, with Musk’s decisions potentially impacting shareholders. Meanwhile, SpaceX prepares for its debut on the stock market valued at $1.77 trillion, with investors and banks potentially normalising such controversial platforms.
While most tourists went about their business, some couldn't resist posing in front of the giant sculpture, including one man who posed as if grabbing Musk's nipples – a move that SAIN calls very bombastic to draw attention to the issue at hand.
