CNN
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Elon Musk says artificial intelligence will take all our jobs, but that's not necessarily a bad thing.
“Everybody will probably lose their jobs,” Musk said about AI. at a tech conference on Thursday.
Speaking remotely via webcam at VivaTech 2024 in Paris, Musk spoke about a future where work is “choosable.”
“If you want your hobby to be your job, make it your job,” Musk said, “but if not, AI and robots will bring you the goods and services you want.”
For this scenario to work, he said there would need to be a “universal high income,” which is different from a universal basic income (UBI, where the government gives a fixed amount of money to everyone, regardless of how much they earn), but he did not specify what that would look like.
“There will be no shortage of goods or services,” he said.
AI capabilities have grown exponentially over the past few years, with regulators, businesses and consumers exploring how to use the technology responsibly. Concerns also continue to grow about how AI will transform different industries and jobs as it becomes more prevalent in the marketplace.
In January, researchers at MIT's Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory found that the adoption of AI in the workplace is progressing at a much slower pace than some had expected and feared. The report also states that most of the jobs previously identified as susceptible to AI are not currently economically beneficial for employers to automate.
Experts also widely believe that many jobs that require high emotional intelligence and human interaction, such as mental health professionals, creative jobs, and teachers, do not need to be replaced.
Musk has been outspoken about his concerns about AI. In his keynote address on Thursday, he called it his biggest fear. He cited Iain Banks' “Culture Book Series,” a utopian portrayal of a society run by advanced technology, as the most realistic and “best portrayal of the AI future.”
But Musk questioned whether people would feel emotionally fulfilled in a jobless future.
“The question really becomes one of meaning: If computers and robots can do everything better than humans can, does life have meaning?” he said. “I think there may still be a role for humans in terms of giving meaning to AI.”
He also urged parents on stage to limit the amount of social media their children watch because they are “programmed by AI to maximise dopamine”.
