Elon Musk has a weird relationship with reality. If you go back to the 2016 Code Conference, he dropped a bombshell that basically redefined how a lot of people view existence. He told a room full of tech elites that there’s a "one in billions" chance we are living in "base reality."
Basically, he thinks we’re characters in a super-advanced video game.
When people say elon doesn't believe in death 2016, they are usually talking about this specific philosophical pivot. If life is just code, then "death" isn't a permanent lights-out. It’s more like a save-game or a server reset.
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But 2016 was a messy year for him. Beyond the high-concept philosophy, it was the year of the first Autopilot fatality and some really heavy personal scrutiny. Let's get into what actually happened and why people are still searching for those "nude" and "sex" rumors that have dogged his SEO profile for years.
The Simulation Argument: Why Death Isn't Real to Musk
At that 2016 conference, Musk used the "Pong" analogy. He pointed out that in 1976, we had two rectangles and a dot. It was garbage. Now, we have photorealistic 3D simulations with millions of people playing simultaneously. If you assume any rate of improvement, games will eventually become indistinguishable from reality.
If that's true, then we are almost certainly in a simulation already.
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For Elon, this isn't just a fun "what if" over a joint. It’s a mathematical probability. If we’re simulations, "death" is just the end of a program. It’s not the end of the consciousness that might be running on a hard drive somewhere. He’s even talked about Neuralink being a way to "back up" your brain state. In that world view, the body is just hardware that eventually fails. You just need to port the software to a new chassis.
2016: The Year of Scandals and "Nude" Rumors
The internet is a thirsty place. If you search for elon doesn't believe in death 2016 sex nude, you'll find a weird mix of high-brow philosophy and bottom-tier tabloid bait.
In 2016, a specific incident occurred on a private jet that didn't actually go public until years later via Business Insider. A flight attendant alleged that Musk exposed himself during a massage. He allegedly offered to buy her a horse if she "did more." Musk has since called these claims "utterly untrue" and politically motivated.
This is likely where the "nude" and "sex" keywords come from in people's search history. People remember the year—2016—and they remember the "horse" scandal, and it all gets mashed together in the Google search bar. Honestly, it’s a classic example of how a person's digital legacy becomes a soup of valid science and messy personal allegations.
Living Forever via Neuralink
Musk isn't a fan of the "live forever" crowd in the traditional sense. He actually thinks society would "asphyxiate" if people didn't die because old people don't change their minds.
"If they don't die, we will be stuck with old ideas and society wouldn't advance." — Elon Musk
However, he’s obsessed with "digital immortality."
Through Neuralink, he wants to create a high-bandwidth interface to the brain. The goal? To allow us to merge with AI so we aren't left behind. If you can map the neurons and the synapses, you can technically "save" a person. That is his version of defeating death. It’s not about keeping the skin and bones alive for 500 years; it’s about making sure the "code" of who you are doesn't get deleted.
The Reality Check
We have to be real here: Neuralink is nowhere near "uploading a soul." Right now, it’s helping people with paralysis move cursors with their minds. That’s incredible, but it's not immortality.
And the simulation theory? It’s untestable. It’s basically "religion for nerds." You can't prove we aren't in a simulation any more than you can prove there isn't a giant teapot orbiting the sun.
What This Means for You
If you’re following the Musk saga, you have to separate the hype from the hardware.
- Check the sources: When you see "nude" or "sex" headlines from 2016, look for the actual legal filings. Usually, it's a rehash of the 2018 settlement regarding the 2016 flight.
- Understand the tech: Neuralink is a medical device first. The "immortality" stuff is a long-term vision (or a marketing pitch).
- Philosophical mindset: Musk’s views on death are rooted in the idea that technology is the only thing that matters. If the tech is good enough, the biological limits don't apply.
If you want to understand the future Musk is building, stop looking at the rockets and start looking at the silicon. He’s betting everything on the idea that the physical world is just a layer we can eventually bypass.
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Next Steps for You:
Check out the original 2016 Code Conference video on YouTube to hear the simulation argument in his own words. It’s a trip. Also, keep an eye on the latest Neuralink human trial updates to see if the "digital backup" theory is getting any closer to reality.