Elon Musk Predicts a Future Where Jobs Are Optional Thanks to AI

Tech giant Elon Musk, speaking at the tech conference VivaTech 2024, predicted that artificial intelligence‘s future could mean employment is optional for people as both AI and robots will be the ones to provide services for necessities.

However, Musk reportedly clarified that “universal high income”-not to be mistaken with universal basic income would be necessary for this scenario to succeed.

While UBI refers to the government providing a set amount of money to all citizens regardless of their income, UHI is a concept that imagines a society in which artificial intelligence lowers the cost of labor, enabling everyone to purchase necessities.  

Musk described his greatest concern in the technology at Thursday’s keynote address. The most realistic and greatest depiction of a future AI, according to him, is the “Culture Book Series” by Ian Banks, a utopian dramatized look at a society run by advanced technology.

Musk, however, questioned if people would have emotional fulfillment in a world without jobs. He questioned whether life would still have a purpose if computers and robots could perform all tasks more effectively than humans. He continues by saying that he believes that humans may still have a part in this because they may give AI purpose.

Read Also: Intelligence Agencies Continue to Warn About AI’s Threat on Election Security 

Musk’s Warning on AI’s Electricity Demand

The tech giant has long expressed his concerns about the advancement of artificial intelligence. Last March, Elon Musk issued a warning over the possible effects of AI on transformer supply and electricity.

Elon Musk stressed the urgent need for the industry to prioritize clean energy generation and accelerate the manufacturing of electrical transformers to quell the supply issue, which he predicted could occur next year, in a Q&A session that closed the Bosch Connected World conference.

The tech billionaire mentioned how quickly AI is developing as well as electronic cars, pointing out that this pace seems unheard of. The demand for AI-related technology is greater than it has ever been, according to the CEO of Tesla, who likened the rate of technical growth to historical gold rushes.

Musk acknowledged the possible risks connected to AI, but he stated that he would rather see the advancements personally than stay away from them. He also emphasized the lack of neural net chips that existed a year ago and forecasted that voltage step-down transformers-which are necessary to run AI systems-would be the next source of congestion. 

He predicted that by 2025, there might not be enough electricity to run the growing number of AI chips. In the end, Musk’s comments emphasized how urgently more clean energy must be produced to meet demand from EVs and AI.  

AI’s Societal Risk

The billionaire also noted in November 2023 that he felt AI posed a “civilizational risk,” pointing out that the repercussions of AI gone wrong would be dire and that “we” needed to take preventative measures rather than reactive ones.

When asked if AI will wipe out humanity, Elon Musk responded that there is a chance; he stressed that he believes it is slim that AI will wipe out humanity. He also said that, even in the unlikely event that there is a probability, humans should take into account the fragility of human civilization. 

Related Article: Top Japanese Companies Demand AI Regulation: “Democracy and Social Order Could Collapse” 

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