The Tesla CEO, Elon Musk, spoke at the U.S.-Saudi Investment Forum in Washington, D.C., on Wednesday. He said that in the next 10 to 20 years, working might not be required. He compared the choice to have a job to the effort needed to grow vegetables in a garden.
Musk said, ” My prediction is that work will be optional. It’ll be like playing sports or a video game or something like that.” He explained, “If you want to work, it’s the same way you can go to the store and just buy some vegetables, or you can grow vegetables in your backyard. It’s much harder to grow vegetables in your backyard, and some people still do it because they like growing vegetables.”
Musk believes that the future of optional work will come from millions of robots in the workforce, leading to a big increase in productivity. He is worth about $470 billion and is trying to make Tesla more than just electric cars. He is working on bringing all his business interests together under his plan for an AI and robot-powered future. This includes his goal of having 80% of Tesla’s value come from his Optimus robots, even though there have been ongoing delays in making these humanoid robots.
Some people are not as optimistic about an automated future, especially because of worries that AI might replace entry-level jobs. This could be part of the job market struggles faced by young people and the lack of income growth—more like a problem than a dream. In Musk’s view, an automated future where work is optional wouldn’t be a problem for money. He mentioned the science fiction books by Iain M. Banks, where there’s a post-scarcity world with superintelligent AI and no traditional jobs.
Musk said, “In those books, money doesn’t exist. It’s kind of interesting.” He added, “And my guess is, if you go out long enough—assuming there’s continued improvement in AI and robotics, which seems likely—money will stop being relevant.”
At Viva Technology 2024, Musk suggested that a “universal high income” could support a world where work isn’t necessary, though he didn’t explain how this system would work. His thinking is similar to that of OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, who supports the idea of universal basic income, which is regular payments given to people without any conditions. Musk said at last year’s conference, ” There would be no shortage of goods or services.”