Google co-founder Larry Page once said he would consider leaving his entire fortune to Elon Musk rather than giving it to a traditional charity. The two billionaires were once close friends who shared a vision of changing humanity’s future. But years later, their relationship reportedly cooled over disagreements about artificial intelligence (AI) and the risks it could pose to humanity. Larry Page’s unusual idea of giving his wealth to Musk came into the spotlight during a 2014 TED interview with Charlie Rose. The interviewer reminded Page of an earlier statement in which the Google co-founder had expressed confidence in Musk’s ability to shape the future.“You once said … that you might consider, rather than giving your money to a cause, simply giving it to Elon Musk because you had confidence he would change the future,” Rose said.Larry Page agreed with the idea, explaining that Musk’s ambition to make humanity a multiplanetary species was itself a form of philanthropy. “He wants to go to Mars — to back up humanity. That’s a company, and it’s philanthropical. So I think we aim to do kind of similar things,” Page said.
Why Larry Page wanted to leave his fortune to Elon Musk
The idea was not just an offhand remark during the TED interview. It had reportedly come up a year earlier at a Stanford event in 2013. During an interview with Elon Musk at the ENCORE Award event, venture capitalist Steve Jurvetson recalled a conversation at a Google lunch where Page unexpectedly spoke about his wealth and what would happen to it if he died.Jurvetson said Larry Page had remarked, “If I got hit by a bus today, I should leave all of it to Elon Musk.” The audience laughed at the statement. Elon Musk, who appeared surprised, asked whether Page had really said that before smiling and referring to him as a good friend.
How AI disagreement reportedly changed Elon Musk and Larry Page’s friendship
The two entrepreneurs had known each other long before they became some of the world’s richest technology leaders. Musk had met Page before securing venture funding for his companies, and their friendship grew around conversations about artificial intelligence, space exploration and the future of humanity.For Larry Page, Musk’s plans to build a future beyond Earth appeared to align with his own belief that technology could help solve some of humanity’s biggest challenges.Despite their shared interests, the relationship between Page and Musk reportedly became strained over artificial intelligence. Both men had strong views about the technology, but their perspectives on its long-term risks differed. Musk has repeatedly warned about the dangers of advanced AI and the need for safeguards. Page, meanwhile, has been associated with a more optimistic view of technological progress. Reports have suggested that their disagreement over AI contributed to the cooling of their friendship.
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