Elon Musk Predicts ‘Age of Abundance’ Thanks to AI — What Would That Mean for Your Paycheck?
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Laura Beck
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Levi Leidy
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Elon Musk’s latest prediction about the future of work sounds equal parts utopian and somewhat terrifying. Speaking at an AI summit in November 2023, the eccentric billionaire claimed that advanced AI will eventually be able to “do everything” when it comes to jobs and employment.
“There will come a point where no job is needed,” he told U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak. “You can have a job if you want personal satisfaction, but the AI will be able to do it all.”
For anyone whose identity and livelihood are tied to their career, that might be a tough pill to swallow. But don’t quit your day job just yet. While Musk foresees AI making human labor optional rather than mandatory for survival, he insists this workforce automation will birth what he dubs an “age of abundance.”
The idea is that hyper-intelligent AI systems will act as all-knowing “magic genies,” providing any goods, services, education – you name it – we could possibly need or want. No more shortages or lack, just plenty for everyone without having to work.
To compensate for the job-pocalypse, Musk is pushing something called “universal high income.” Unlike basic minimum income schemes, this would provide a more generous, living wage-level of financial support to everyone, no questions asked. “It’ll be somewhat of an equalizer,” he said.
Sounds idyllic in theory. But of course, not everyone is a total believer. Workplace experts like Julia Hobsbawm are sounding the skeptic alarm.
“I’m afraid Mr. Musk is an unrealistic utopian,” she shared with GOBankingRates. “Like many in tech, he argues that replacing humans at work is inevitable and desirable. It absolutely is not.”
Hobsbawm argues the focus should be on properly training workers to team up with AI systems – not just hand them a check while the robots take over. “Work matters in our lives,” she insists.
So is Musk’s ‘age of abundance’ a true glimpse of an AI-powered future where no one has to work? Or are we headed toward mass joblessness and societal collapse? Other experts like Alexandra Levit, author of“Humanity Works,” take a more measured view.
“I think he’s right… somewhat,” Levit said. “We’ll likely have a form of basic income, and AI will automate away parts of jobs. But it won’t happen overnight or as extremely as Musk suggests.”
Levit predicts that while AI will be immensely disruptive across industries, it will also create new job opportunities we can’t yet imagine. “I believe enough new roles will emerge that humans won’t totally stop working.”
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