Elon Musk Commends Xi Jinping as ‘Great Leader’ in Chinese Media Interview

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Elon Musk praised Chinese President Xi Jinping as a ‘great leader’ during an interview broadcast on Chinese state television, CCTV, on Wednesday. The Tesla CEO highlighted the ‘increased prosperity of the average Chinese citizen’ as evidence of Xi’s leadership skills.

Musk’s comments came a day before Xi is set to attend a White House state dinner hosted by President Donald Trump. This marks the second summit between the leaders of the world’s two largest economies this year, with Musk expected to attend as well.

Economic Growth and AI Praise

Musk credited Xi with China’s economic growth, stating, ‘Under his tenure, China has prospered immensely.’ He noted the visible impact of this growth, saying, ‘It’s also obvious to see that, just walking around the streets, the increased prosperity of the average Chinese citizen.’

He also commended Tesla’s operations in Shanghai, where the company’s main production hub and largest export center are located. Musk described the team there as ‘incredibly talented, hardworking and trustworthy,’ and praised the Shanghai factory as ‘a gem’ and ‘beautiful.’

AI Industry and Technology Competition

Musk further praised China’s AI industry, which is in a technology race with the United States for control of artificial intelligence. He said, ‘The Chinese AI models are generally outstanding,’ and noted that despite limited computing resources, the performance is ‘excellent.’ Musk predicted that China would overcome compute limitations faster than expected, with advancements in lithography and chip-making likely within two to three years.

The comments come at a challenging time for Tesla’s China operations, as combined Model 3 and Model Y sales from the Shanghai plant rose only 3.6 percent year-on-year in August, a slowdown from July’s pace.

Source: Breitbart

Written by

Connor Davis