In the future envisioned by the world’s richest man, Elon Musk, humanity will not need to work, nor will it need money, and poverty will cease to exist.
At the Saudi-American Investment Forum on Wednesday, Musk participated in a panel discussion on artificial intelligence (AI) alongside NVIDIA CEO Jensen Huang. During this discussion, Musk stated, “Thanks to artificial intelligence, money will ‘lose its meaning.'”.
“Resources like electricity and materials still have limitations,” Musk said. “But I believe that one day, money will lose its meaning.”
Musk referenced the works of science fiction author Iain Banks, who wrote the “Culture” series from 1987 to 2012. He pointed out that these books help to understand “what the future of artificial intelligence looks like.”
Musk also discussed the end of work, stating that future work will become “optional,” just like “exercising or playing video games.”.
He used gardening as a metaphor for the future nature of work. “Growing vegetables in your backyard is actually much more trouble, but some people will still do it because they enjoy gardening,” he said. “Future work will be like that: a choice based on personal preference.”
In recent months, Musk has shared his vision for the future of artificial intelligence multiple times. This includes the elimination of poverty—something he mentioned at a recent investor meeting.
“People often talk about eliminating poverty and ensuring everyone has access to quality healthcare,” Musk stated at a shareholder meeting earlier this month. “There is only one way to achieve this goal, and that is through the use of the Optimus robot.”
In October, Musk stated in an interview that when artificial intelligence and robotics (such as Tesla’s Optimus robot) replace all jobs and render money meaningless, the government should provide universal income. He emphasized that this income should not just be basic universal income, but rather a high universal income.
After discussing the future of money losing its meaning, Musk jokingly teased Huang, who was on stage with him. “By the way, NVIDIA is having its earnings call today,” Musk quipped.
NVIDIA is set to announce its Q3 fiscal 2026 results after the U.S. stock market closes on Wednesday, with the report directly related to NVIDIA’s revenue, profit, and other core financial data, closely tied to current “monetary interests.”
In response to Musk’s clever segue, Huang humorously replied, “Well, money is going to be useless anyway…”
“Cheers,” Musk responded, and then he laughed as he clinked his bottle of Puna mineral water with Huang’s, creating a light-hearted atmosphere at the event.
