Advances in artificial intelligence and robotics could make working a choice rather than a necessity in the coming decades, US entrepreneur Elon Musk has suggested.
The billionaire made the bold prediction at a US-Saudi investment forum on Thursday, during a panel discussion about the long-term impacts of robotics and AI on the workforce.
“I don’t know what long-term is, maybe it’s 10, 20 years or something like that,” Musk said. “My prediction is that work will be optional.”
He went on to suggest that future work would feel more like a hobby than a requirement, the way some people choose to grow vegetables in their backyard instead of buying them.
“It’ll be like playing sports or a video game or something like that,” he said.
Musk also argued that in a future dominated by advanced AI and robotics, money could lose much of its meaning. “I think at some point, currency becomes irrelevant,” he said.
He acknowledged, however, that there is “a lot of work” left before technology and society reach anything close to that future.
Part of Musk’s optimism is tied to Tesla’s development of Optimus, a bipedal humanoid robot designed to take on repetitive, physical and potentially dangerous tasks. The company envisions Optimus eventually working in factories, warehouses and even homes. Musk has claimed humanoid robots could become “the biggest industry or the biggest product ever, bigger than cellphones.”
Sceptics say, however, that a 10 to 20-year timeline is overly ambitious, noting that several previous predictions by Musk, such as widespread robot-taxis by 2019 or a crewed Mars mission by 2024, have not panned out. Robotics experts also point out that building a general-purpose humanoid capable of safe, reliable real-world performance remains far more complex and expensive than developing a specialized robot.
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Musk’s claims come amid mounting concern over how AI and robotics will reshape employment and the economy. In recent years, corporate giants have eliminated tens of thousands of jobs as they intensify automation.
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