Elon Musk calls AI his “biggest fear”

New Delhi:

Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, has stated that artificial intelligence (AI) will eventually eliminate all jobs, but believes this is not necessarily a bad development, CNN reported. Speaking at a startups and technology event in Paris on Thursday, Musk said: “None of us will probably have jobs.”

Elon Musk spoke remotely via webcam at the Viva Tech event, where he predicted a future where jobs would be “optional.”

He said, “If you want to do a job that’s like a hobby, you can do a job.” Musk added: “But otherwise, AI and robots will provide whatever goods and services you want.”

Musk highlighted that for this scenario to work, a “universal high income” would be necessary, which should not be confused with universal basic income, however, he did not go into much detail about this concept.

Universal basic income (UBI) refers to the government providing a certain amount of money to everyone, regardless of their income.

“There would be no shortage of goods or services,” Musk said. He highlighted that AI capabilities have advanced rapidly in recent years, advancing so quickly that regulators, companies and users are still figuring out how to use the technology responsibly.

In the past, Musk has also expressed his concerns about AI. During his talk on Thursday, he described technology as his “biggest fear.” He cited Ian Banks’ “Culture Book Series,” a fictional, utopian depiction of a society driven by advanced technology, as the most realistic and “the best vision of future AI.”

Musk questioned whether people would feel emotionally fulfilled in a future without jobs.

“The question will really be one of meaning – if the computer and robots can do everything better than you, does your life have meaning?” Musk said.

He added: “I think maybe there is still a role for humans in this – to the extent that we can give meaning to AI.”

He also advised parents to control and limit the amount of social media their children consume, saying social media platforms “are being programmed by an AI that maximizes dopamine.”

Industry experts continually raise concerns about how various industries and jobs will be transformed as AI proliferates in the market.

CNN reports that in January, researchers at MIT’s Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory found that workplaces are adopting AI more slowly than some expected and feared. The report also noted that many jobs previously identified as vulnerable to AI were not economically beneficial for employers to automate at that time.

Experts largely believe that many jobs that require high emotional intelligence and human interaction, such as mental health professionals, creatives and teachers, will not need to be replaced.

(Except the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)