Elon Musk, chief executive of Tesla and SpaceX, predicted on Tuesday that artificial intelligence could expand the global economy by 20% to 30%, generating up to $30 trillion in annual economic output, while forecasting that at least 1 billion humanoid robots would emerge within the next decade.
“The productivity gains from AI are already evident, and robotics will take that to a completely new level,” Musk said via video link at the G20 summit in Asheville, North Carolina. “To put this in perspective, I think AI could increase the size of the global economy by 20% to 30% – that’s a rough estimate – which means roughly $20 trillion to $30 trillion per year in additional output”.
Musk expressed his most optimistic outlook on robotics, projecting that the world would see more than 1 billion humanoid robots within ten years. He said each robot would be at least five times as productive as a human, meaning the total output from 1 billion robots would surpass that of all human workers combined. The billionaire further argued that widespread adoption of humanoid robots could expand the global economy by more than tenfold.
The comments came as Musk’s rocket company SpaceX continues to ramp up its AI investments. The company reported $2.6 billion in second-quarter AI revenue, up 247% year-over-year, and invested $15.8 billion in AI infrastructure during the quarter, primarily for the expansion of its Colossus II data centre.
