Elon Musk Predicts AI Will Lead to "Universal High Income" and Eliminate Need for Human Work

Tesla CEO Elon Musk believes that advancements in artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually make human labor obsolete, leading to a society where everyone will receive a guaranteed minimum income and have an abundance of goods and services.

Billionaire entrepreneur Elon Musk reiterated his stance this week that artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually eliminate the need for humans to work, giving his vision for how the future will look as the technology continues to rapidly advance.

During his remote appearance at the Viva Technology conference in Paris on Thursday, Musk was asked whether he was concerned about losing his job to AI, and what he would do if that were to happen.

Musk replied, "In a benign scenario, probably none of us will have a job. There will be universal high income — and not universal basic income — universal high income. There'll be no shortage of goods or services."

Musk said that in his opinion, there is an 80% chance that AI advances will result in such a situation where humans will not need a job and will have all they need.

"The question will really be one of meaning, of how — if a computer can do, and the robots can do everything better than you … does your life have meaning?" Musk said. "That really will be the question in that benign scenario, and in the negative scenario, all bets are off where we're in deep trouble."

Musk has predicted before that AI will eventually become so advanced it will eliminate the need for humans to work.

"I think we are seeing the most disruptive force in history here," Musk said of AI during a sit-down with U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak at the inaugural AI Safety Summit in London last fall.

"It's hard to say exactly what that moment is, but there will come a point where no job is needed," the tech billionaire said. "You can have a job if you want to have a job — sort of personal satisfaction — but the AI will be able to do everything,"".

Musk's prediction aligns with the views of other experts who believe that AI will have a profound impact on the labor market.

The International Monetary Fund (IMF) has warned that AI is like a "tsunami" hitting the labor force, and that it will lead to job losses in many sectors.

The McKinsey Global Institute has estimated that AI could automate up to 30% of all jobs in the United States by 2030.

However, some experts believe that the impact of AI on the labor market will be less severe than Musk predicts.

They argue that AI will create new jobs in fields such as AI development, maintenance, and repair.

They also point out that AI has the potential to boost productivity and economic growth, which could lead to higher wages and more jobs overall.

Regardless of the exact impact of AI on the labor market, it is clear that the technology is rapidly changing the way we work.

Companies and governments need to start preparing for a future where AI will play a major role in the workplace.

This includes investing in AI education and training, and developing policies that support workers who are displaced by AI.