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Elon Musk is a Liar – This Should Worry You · Elon Musk Podcast

• 0:00
  How much influence should Elon Musk have over the US
• 0:03
  government's Internet infrastructure?
• 0:05
  Now, despite President Donald Trump's promise to slash
• 0:08
  government spending and cut the federal workforce, Elon Musk's
• 0:13
  SpaceX controlled network is quietly embedding itself deeper
• 0:17
  into multiple agencies. The General Services
• 0:20
  Administration, or the GSA, has already adopted it at the direct
• 0:24
  request of Elon Musk's team, and agencies, including the Federal
• 0:28
  Aviation Administration or the FAA and the Customs and Border
• 0:32
  Protection. CBP are actively considering
• 0:35
  making the switch to Starlink. But with Musk serving as both
• 0:39
  the CEO of SpaceX and a senior advisor to Donald Trump, his
• 0:44
  involvement is raising some serious ethical red flags.
• 0:49
  After all, when a government contract conveniently lines the
• 0:52
  pocket of a White House insider, people tend to notice.
• 0:58
  Starlink has built a reputation for providing Internet access in
• 1:02
  remote areas, disaster zones, and even war zones.
• 1:05
  Unlike traditional Internet providers that rely on fiber
• 1:08
  optic cables and cell towers, Starlink operates through a
• 1:11
  constellation of lower orbit satellites.
• 1:15
  Now this offers high speed connectivity almost anywhere
• 1:18
  around the world. It's a useful service, but the
• 1:21
  bigger issue isn't whether Starlink works.
• 1:23
  It's the fact that Elon Musk, a man who can single handedly
• 1:27
  decide where and when to activate or cut off Internet
• 1:30
  access, now holds increasing control over government
• 1:33
  communications. And Starlink has built a
• 1:35
  reputation for providing Internet access in remote areas,
• 1:38
  disaster zones, and even war zones.
• 1:40
  Unlike traditional Internet providers that rely on fiber
• 1:43
  optic cables and cell towers, Starlink operates through a
• 1:46
  constellation of low orbit satellites offering high speed
• 1:50
  connectivity almost anywhere. It's a useful service if you
• 1:54
  don't mind the fact that it's satellites have a five year
• 1:56
  lifespan and require constant replacement.
• 2:00
  But the bigger issue isn't whether Starlink works.
• 2:03
  It's the fact that Musk, a man who can single handedly decide
• 2:08
  where and when to activate or cut off Internet access, now
• 2:11
  holds increasing control over government communications.
• 2:15
  Now the GS as embrace of Sterling came under particularly
• 2:19
  curious circumstances. According to a former GSA
• 2:22
  employee, Sterling was installed in its Washington headquarters
• 2:26
  in mid February within days of a request from Musk's Department
• 2:30
  of Government Efficiency, or DOGE.
• 2:32
  Normally a decision like this would take weeks, even months,
• 2:37
  as agencies conduct reviews on security, procurement and budget
• 2:42
  concerns. But apparently, when Musk wants
• 2:45
  something bureaucratic, red tape magically disappears.
• 2:48
  Internal documents confirm that a Starlink network was quickly
• 2:52
  up and running at the agency's office on F St.
• 2:57
  NW. Now, when asked about it, the
• 2:59
  GSA just didn't comment. And then there's the FAA, which
• 3:04
  already signed a $2.4 billion fifteen year contract with
• 3:09
  Verizon in 2023 to modernize its communication infrastructure.
• 3:14
  But Elon Musk isn't 1 to take no for an answer.
• 3:17
  He took to X to announce that he wanted the FAA to switch to
• 3:21
  Starlink, claiming the terminals were being sent at no cost to
• 3:26
  taxpayers. Now, it sounds generous, except
• 3:29
  it's unclear what kind of financial arrangement would
• 3:32
  follow. Now, Bloomberg reported that
• 3:34
  Musk personally approved the shipment of 4000 Sterling
• 3:38
  terminals to the FAA last month, raising questions about whether
• 3:42
  he's trying to force the agency's hand.
• 3:45
  The Washington Post has even reported that the FAA was
• 3:48
  considering canceling its Verizon deal altogether.
• 3:52
  CBP is also eyeing Sterling. According to a Department of
• 3:55
  Homeland Security document obtained by Fed Scoop, CBP has
• 4:00
  been interested in the service since 2023, before Trump's
• 4:03
  return to office. CBP officials have now issued
• 4:06
  internal paperwork to evaluate Starlink for use in border
• 4:10
  surveillance, and meanwhile, another unnamed federal agency
• 4:14
  has been reviewing the service as a backup communications tool
• 4:17
  in emergency solutions. Now, this evaluation, which
• 4:20
  began in February, seems to be proceeding through the normal
• 4:24
  channels. Whether that means a contract is
• 4:26
  inevitable remains to be seen, though.
• 4:29
  Now let's talk about why any of this matters to you.
• 4:33
  Government contracts aren't just about bureaucracy and budget
• 4:36
  lines. They directly impacts you, the
• 4:38
  taxpayers. Now, if Musk Starlink becomes
• 4:41
  the government's go to provider, that means your tax dollars
• 4:44
  could be funneled into a private business controlled by one of
• 4:48
  the most politically influential figures in the country.
• 4:52
  And if decisions about Internet access in emergency situations,
• 4:55
  military operations or even civilian infrastructure are left
• 4:59
  up to a single private company or to Elon Musk, that creates a
• 5:02
  level of dependency that should make people uneasy.
• 5:06
  Just ask Ukraine, which learned the hard way that Musk alone
• 5:09
  decides whether it's Starlink terminals stay online during
• 5:13
  wartime. Then there's the question of
• 5:15
  competition, or lack thereof. The government is supposed to
• 5:18
  award contracts through a fair bidding process, ensuring
• 5:22
  taxpayers get the best service at the best price.
• 5:26
  But if Musk's direct access to the White House gives him an
• 5:29
  inside track, other providers like Verizon or AT&T may not
• 5:34
  stay at a chance. Now, the result is less
• 5:36
  competition, higher costs, and a system that's increasingly
• 5:40
  controlled by 1 billionaire with an unpredictable track record of
• 5:45
  business decisions made via late night social media posts.
• 5:51
  Now, not everyone in Washington is thrilled about this, though.
• 5:54
  Senator Maria Cantwell, top Democrat on the Senate Commerce
• 5:58
  Committee, has called Musk's efforts to interfere with the
• 6:01
  FAA's existing contract serious red flags.
• 6:05
  She pointed out that federal procurement laws require open
• 6:08
  competition and transparency, two things that seem to be
• 6:11
  missing from Elon Musk's push to replace Verizon.
• 6:14
  She said we need answers now about how the administration
• 6:18
  will enforce these laws to ensure aviation safety takes
• 6:21
  precedent over private gain. SpaceX is downplaying any
• 6:25
  suggestion that is trying to take over federal contracts.
• 6:28
  In a post on X, the company claimed that Starlink is merely
• 6:32
  a partial fix to an aging system, that it is working with
• 6:35
  the FAA to explore whether satellite based Internet could
• 6:38
  be used to modernize aviation communications.
• 6:42
  Now, Verizon isn't backing down, though.
• 6:44
  The company released a statement last week saying that it's
• 6:47
  committed to the FAA contract and is already working to
• 6:50
  upgrade the agency's outdated technology.
• 6:53
  And the FAA itself has been careful in its response.
• 6:56
  While it has not directly addressed whether it might
• 6:59
  cancel its Verizon deal, the agency released the pretty vague
• 7:03
  statement saying that modernizing air traffic control
• 7:06
  will require multiple companies and multiple technologies,
• 7:10
  including satellites, fiber and wireless systems.
• 7:13
  Now, whether that means Starlink will be included or whether it's
• 7:16
  just a polite way of brushing off Musk's advances remains
• 7:20
  unclear. Of course, federal contracts are
• 7:23
  just one part of Starlink's business.
• 7:25
  The service is already in use by major airlines like United,
• 7:28
  cruise operators, and private customers around the world.
• 7:31
  And during the Super Bowl, T-Mobile ran an ad bragging
• 7:34
  about his partnership with Starlink to improve rural
• 7:37
  coverage. Now, according to SpaceX, more
• 7:40
  than 5 million people across 125 countries now use Starlink.
• 7:43
  For individual customers, Starlink offers plans at about
• 7:46
  $80.00 per month for low usage, while the standard home plan
• 7:50
  costs 120 per month with a $149 setup fee.
• 7:55
  Now, Elon Musk has claimed that Starlink's revenue will help
• 7:59
  Starship and pay for humanity to get to Mars.
• 8:03
  Those. SpaceX doesn't disclose whether
• 8:05
  the service is profitable yet. In fact, the 2022 Musk admitted
• 8:09
  Sterling was losing money. That hasn't stopped him from
• 8:12
  aggressively expanding the service or from seeking more
• 8:15
  government contracts. Meanwhile, competitors are
• 8:18
  racing to catch up. European company Eudolstadt is
• 8:22
  in talks with the EU to supply satellite Internet to Ukraine
• 8:26
  with its One Web service. Amazon is developing Project
• 8:29
  Kuiper, its own low orbit satellite Internet system.
• 8:32
  And the Trump administration is also reviewing a proposed merger
• 8:36
  between satellite operations SES and Intelsat, which could create
• 8:41
  a stronger rival to Sterling. Hey, thanks for watching today.
• 8:43
  I really do appreciate your support.
• 8:46
  If you like this content, give it a thumbs up and I really want
• 8:49
  to know what you think about this.
• 8:51
  Leave a comment down below about what you think about this.
• 8:54
  Do you think Elon and Starlink are going behind the American
• 8:57
  people's back in procuring these contracts without the proper
• 9:02
  channels? Let me know what you think.
• 9:05
  I want to have a conversation about this.
• 9:06
  Let's open this up to everybody. Again, thank you so much for
• 9:10
  watching today. Take care of yourselves and each
• 9:12
  other and I'll see you in the next one.