Tesla and SpaceX CEO Elon Musk has predicted that advances in artificial intelligence and robotics could eventually eliminate the need for most human labour, forcing governments to rethink traditional economic models.
Musk shared his views during a conversation with XPRIZE founder Peter Diamandis at the Abundance Summit, where he outlined a future in which AI-powered systems and humanoid robots produce an abundance of goods and services.
According to the billionaire entrepreneur, the rapid advancement of AI will extend far beyond automating repetitive tasks, creating an economy capable of producing far more than people can consume.
“AI and robots are going to make so much stuff and provide so many services that they will actually run out of things to do for humans,” Musk said.
He argued that as productivity continues to grow, human demand for goods and services will eventually reach its limit, even as machines continue to generate wealth at unprecedented levels.
Musk said such a scenario would fundamentally alter the global economy, shifting the focus from concepts such as universal basic income to what he described as “universal high income.”
“I do think we’ll have universal high income. We’re basically just issuing money to people,” he said.
According to Musk, if the growth in goods and services significantly outpaces the expansion of the money supply, the economy would experience deflation rather than inflation.
He suggested that AI-driven productivity could make products and services so abundant that governments would be able to provide financial support to citizens without triggering the inflationary pressures traditionally associated with increased public spending.
Musk’s comments add to the ongoing global debate over the long-term impact of artificial intelligence on employment, economic growth and the future of work as AI technologies continue to evolve rapidly.