Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu declared Monday that “we are at the dawn of a new era” following a phone conversation Sunday night with Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla and SpaceX, and owner of Twitter.
“We are at the dawn of a new era for humanity, an era of artificial intelligence. Things are changing at a dizzying pace and Israel must formulate a national policy on this issue,” Netanyahu said in a video message posted on Facebook.
“Last night I had a long conversation with Elon Musk, whose insight and contribution to humanity I hold in high esteem,” Netanyahu said.
“He spoke at length about two things. First, about the need for governments to understand both the opportunities and the dangers of artificial intelligence.
“Second, he expressed his view that Israel could become a significant global player in the field.
“I am certain that this is true and we will do it,” Netanyahu emphasized.
Conversation with Sam Altman
The prime minister also spoke by telephone on Monday with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman.
The two men discussed the “opportunities and challenges facing the world and the State of Israel” regarding artificial intelligence, Netanyahu’s office said in a release.
As had Musk, Altman expressed the view that Israel could become a “main global player” in the field.
Netanyahu and Altman also discussed the prospect of his company cooperating with Israel to develop the field, the Prime Minister’s Office said.
Israeli National AI Policy
The prime minister said that in the coming days, he intends to set up a team to establish a national AI policy in the civilian and security spheres.
“Just as we turned Israel into a global cyber power, we will also do so in artificial intelligence,” he said.
