#01
If you could ask a superintelligent AI one question, what would it be?
TL;DR"What's outside the simulation?"
Lex Fridman Podcast #18 @ 31:53Apr 12, 2019
IAQ · Interesting Asked Questions
The most interesting questions Elon has answered.
#02
What science fiction gets the future most right?
TL;DRIain M. Banks' Culture books. He calls them the least inaccurate version of the future.
Joe Rogan #2404 @ 2:49:07Oct 31, 2025
#03
If we're in a simulation, which outcome is most likely?
TL;DRThe most interesting one, and preferably the most ironic. Just look at AI company names.
Cheeky Pint (with Dwarkesh Patel) @ 58:16Feb 5, 2026
#04
If you could go back and change one decision, which would it be?
TL;DRStarting Tesla with JB Straubel alone. He calls it his worst business decision by far.
TED2022 @ 32:06Apr 14, 2022
#05
What's your favorite funny movie?
TL;DRLife of Brian and Tropic Thunder. He's also called Life of Brian the best movie ever.
“Life of Brian and Tropic Thunder”@elonmusk on X
@elonmusk on X, Jul 1, 2025Jul 1, 2025
#06
What is death, really?
TL;DRThe loss of information. If your memories survive intact, you've achieved a kind of immortality.
Lex Fridman #438 @ 29:11Aug 2, 2024
#07
What was the real lesson of HAL in 2001: A Space Odyssey?
TL;DRDon't make the AI lie. (Also: better prompt engineering would've opened the pod bay doors.)
Cheeky Pint (with Dwarkesh Patel) @ 50:20Feb 5, 2026
#08
Is war part of human nature?
TL;DRAll creatures fight. The real enemy is ignorance, not other humans.
Lex Fridman #400 @ 1:42Nov 9, 2023
#09
What do history's darkest moments teach us about human nature?
TL;DRMostly, people just get on with their lives. Wars and disasters are rare, or we wouldn't be here.
Lex Fridman #252 @ 1:50:13Dec 28, 2021
#10
So what is xAI's plan to win?
TL;DRNot on a podcast, and not without at least three more Guinnesses.
Cheeky Pint (with Dwarkesh Patel) @ 1:04:21Feb 5, 2026
#11
What role does love play in what you do?
TL;DRIt's the foundation. He wants us to go multiplanetary because he loves humanity.
Lex Fridman #252 @ 2:26:08Dec 28, 2021
#12
What's one of the best video games ever?
TL;DRBaldur's Gate 2. He calls it one of the best games ever.
“BG2 was one of the best games ever.”@elonmusk on X
@elonmusk on X, Oct 1, 2023Oct 1, 2023
#13
Will AI discover a theory of everything?
TL;DRIt has to. An AI that can't discover new physics isn't even at human level.
Lex Fridman #400 @ 38:15Nov 9, 2023
#14
What new businesses will SpaceX stumble into on the way to Mars?
TL;DRThings like a mass driver on the Moon launching AI satellites into deep space. He says it can all feel like a simulation.
Cheeky Pint (with Dwarkesh Patel) @ 33:24Feb 5, 2026
#15
What's your favorite Rick and Morty idea?
TL;DRThe butter robot. Don't trap a super-intelligence in a toaster.
Lex Fridman #252 @ 2:16:32Dec 28, 2021
#16
Are you Satoshi Nakamoto? Would you tell us if you were?
TL;DRNo. He says he'd tell us if he were, and credits Nick Szabo with the ideas behind Bitcoin.
Lex Fridman #252 @ 1:00:16Dec 28, 2021
#17
When will you manufacture 100,000 Optimuses?
TL;DRFirst, a correction: the plural is "Optimi."
Cheeky Pint (with Dwarkesh Patel) @ 1:25:26Feb 5, 2026