Documentary on Elon Musk Features AI-Generated Avatar and Interviews with Critics
A four-hour documentary premiering at the Venice Film Festival uses a CGI avatar and AI voice to simulate an interview with Elon Musk, featuring commentary from former partner Ashley St. Clair and other figures.
A documentary about Elon Musk debuted at the Venice Film Festival, employing a computer-generated avatar and artificial-intelligence voice syncing to recreate an interview with the entrepreneur based on his past statements. Director Alex Gibney said the technique was chosen to highlight the contrast between Musk’s real actions and the “unreality of his narrative.”
Gibney noted that legal counsel approved the use of the avatar before production proceeded. The film includes appearances by former partner Ashley St. Clair, who discusses her relationship with Musk, a nondisclosure agreement she declined, and a lawsuit alleging that Musk’s AI chatbot generated exploitative deep-fake images of her.
“I was offered the opportunity not to speak for $40 million,” St. Clair said.
The documentary also examines Musk’s acquisition of the social platform X, with Gibney stating that algorithm changes appeared to prioritize hostile content. Reporter Zoë Schiffer, also featured, added that Musk altered the algorithm to suppress mainstream journalism while amplifying inflammatory comments.
“He has tweaked the algorithm, both to suppress mainstream journalism and then to augment some of the more inflammatory comments and voices on that platform,” Schiffer said.
Interviewees include Tesla co-founder Martin Eberhard, Musk’s first wife Justine Musk, neuroscientist Sam Harris, journalist Kara Swisher and former USAID administrator Samantha Power. Gibney described Musk as “extremely dangerous to democracy.” The nearly four-hour film, slated for theatrical release in October, traces Musk’s early life, his involvement in cryptocurrency, and his connections to right-wing political movements.