Filmmaker Alex Gibney's new documentary about Elon Musk uses an AI avatar to simulate an interview with Musk, referencing his own claim that we're living in a simulation. The film, which premiered at the Venice Film Festival, also features Ashley St. Clair, who shares a child with Musk and appears in the film to discuss their relationship and her lawsuit against his AI company over deepfake images of herself. Gibney believes Musk is "extremely" dangerous to democracy, citing his manipulation of algorithms on Twitter to prioritize hate speech and suppress mainstream journalism. The documentary, which will be released in October, explores Musk's childhood and his involvement with right-wing politics, among other topics.
Written by the local model on 2026-09-08,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
Story summary
Documentarian Alex Gibney has made a new film, "Musk", which premiered at the Venice Film Festival. The film explores the life and power of Elon Musk, including his childhood trauma, his rise in Silicon Valley, and his involvement in right-wing politics internationally. Gibney believes Musk is extremely dangerous to democracy and thinks he's stoking fires that could be catastrophic if not regulated. The documentary also features an interview with Ashley St. Clair, a former conservative influencer who has a child with Musk and appears in the film, discussing their relationship and her experience with his AI company. In an ironic twist, the filmmakers used an Artificial Intelligence avatar to simulate an interview with Musk using things he's said in interviews, referencing his own theory that we're living in a simulation. The documentary is set for release in October through Bleecker Street.
Written for “Elon Musk's Influence and Power” on 2026-09-08,
grounded in this article and the 3 other(s) covering the same event.
Why this leaning score
The article's own words the score was based on. Each is quoted
verbatim and was checked against the article text before being
stored, so you can find it in the original.
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Gibney said it is to convey the “reality of what he’s done and unreality of his narrative.”
left implying Musk's actions are deceptive
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St. Clair said she believes he’s stoking fires and “causing deliberate division that could be catastrophic if it’s not regulated or contained.”
left accusing Musk of causing harm and advocating for regulation
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Gibney said he thinks Musk is “extremely” dangerous to democracy.
left directly stating Musk's actions are a threat to democracy
Leaning score -0.75 for article 6953 (high confidence, 3 verified quotes) · logged 2026-09-08
A new documentary about Elon Musk uses an Artificial Intelligence avatar to simulate an interview with the SpaceX and Tesla CEO using things he’s really said in interviews.
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he → use → interviews
The choice, filmmaker Alex Gibney said Tuesday in Venice before the film's world premiere, was intentionally ironic.
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Gibney → say → premiere
It both references Musk’s proposition that we’re all living in a simulation and pokes at his somewhat paradoxical and shifting views of the technology.
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we → reference → technology
Gibney said it is to convey the “reality of what he’s done and unreality of his narrative.”
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he → say → narrative
The filmmakers consulted lawyers before going too far down the road and got the sign-off to use the Musk avatar.
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filmmakers → consult → avatar
The Oscar-winning filmmaker was joined at the Venice Film Festival by Ashley St. Clair, once a conservative influencer, who shares a child with Musk and who appears in the film.
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who → win → film
She talks about their relationship, his character and the nondisclosure agreement she was asked, and refused, to sign to guarantee paternity support.
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she → talk → support
“I was offered the opportunity not to speak for $40 million,” she said.
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she → offer → million
St. Clair earlier this year also sued Musk's AI company, saying its Grok chatbot allowed users to generate sexually exploitive deepfake images of her that have caused her humiliation and emotional distress.
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that → sue → humiliation
The film goes into Musk's takeover of X and what Gibney says is the manipulation of the algorithm.
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Gibney → go → algorithm
“One thing that I didn't properly understand when I started the film was how Musk tweaked algorithms at Twitter to, in fact, prioritize vitriol and hate over, you know, the town square,” Gibney said.
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Gibney → understand → square
“Wired” reporter Zoë Schiffer, who also appears in the film, added that “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.”
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he → appear → platform
St. Clair said she believes he’s stoking fires and “causing deliberate division that could be catastrophic if it’s not regulated or contained.”
With a runtime of nearly four hours, “Musk” delves into his traumatic childhood, including an interview with his father, Errol Musk, and traces his early days in Silicon Valley through his DOGE work with the second Donald Trump administration and involvement in right-wing politics internationally.
uncertain
Musk → say → politics
It was, Gibney said, going to be a much shorter film before Musk wrapped himself in Trump's campaign.
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Musk → say → campaign
Those interviewed include Tesla co-founder Martin Eberhard, his first wife Justine Musk, neurologist Sam Harris, tech reporter Kara Swisher and former USAID Administrator Samantha Power.
Gibney said he thinks Musk is “extremely” dangerous to democracy.
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Musk → interview → democracy
The film, which will be released in theaters in October, raises alarms about the information the “DOGE boys” gathered on U.S. citizens with their unfettered access to so many government agencies.
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boys → release → agencies
