Tesla and Space boss Elon Musk has said recently that in the next 10 to 20 years, work will be optional, likening the decision to have a job to the more laborious upkeep of a vegetable garden.
Musk said “My prediction is that work will be optional, it’ll be like playing sports or a video game or something like that, if you want to work or may not, the same way you can go to the store and just buy some vegetables, or you can grow vegetables in your backyard. It’s much harder to grow vegetables in your backyard and some people still do it because they like growing vegetables.”
Musk added “My guess is that perhaps in the next 10–15 years, working will become optional. People may work if they want to, or may not. Jobs will become a hobby rather than a necessity. That’s because AI will create such productivity that most needs will be fulfilled by robots and machines.
However, some people will still work because they enjoy it, not because they need it for survival. Musk believes the future world will run entirely on AI and robots. All tasks will be carried out through them, increasing productivity.
Economist Sharad Kohli explains: ‘Musk’s statement has two meanings. First, working will depend on personal choice and second, because of AI, jobs will become so few that people will not get work.
She added we are already seeing signs of this. “Between January and October 2025, more than 1 lakh employees have already lost their jobs across 218 companies worldwide. AI is believed to be the biggest reason for this. Everyone would be granted ‘universal high income’ he said
Musk, who is seeking $139 billion compensation package as Tesla CEO, urged people not to worry about stashing money away for retirement, as it won’t matter in the future.
Elon Musk, whose net worth is more than $600 billion said that saving for retirement will be “irrelevant” if he’s right about what the future holds. The SpaceX CEO has predicted AI would help create an “abundance” of resources for all.
People would have “whatever stuff they want” and access to superb healthcare and education, he said. He made the remarks during the latest episode of the “Moonshots with Peter Diamandis” podcast.
Elon Musk has anticipated that this future would enable people to have access to better medical care than anyone has today, available for everyone within five years and a world with “no scarcity of goods and services.”
He described a future where advances in AI, energy, and robotics supercharge productivity, creating an “abundance” of resources that would allow everyone to be granted a “universal high income.”
The good future is anyone can have whatever stuff they want,” Musk said. That would mean “better medical care than anyone has today, available for everyone within five years,” he continued. “No scarcity of goods.