Billionaire entrepreneur and Tesla Chief Executive Officer, Elon Musk, has warned that artificial intelligence (AI) could surpass the combined intelligence of humanity within the next five years, a development he said would fundamentally alter how people live, work and find purpose.
Musk made the assertion at the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos during a discussion with BlackRock CEO, Larry Fink, noting that the pace of AI development has exceeded earlier expectations.
“AI could be smarter than any individual human this year,” Musk said, adding that “within five years, it may be smarter than all of humanity combined.”
Beyond software, Musk linked the rapid growth of AI to advances in humanoid robotics, which he said could significantly reshape the global economy.
According to him, Tesla’s Optimus humanoid robots are already performing basic tasks within the company’s factories, with more advanced capabilities expected in the near future.
“If things go well, we expect to sell humanoid robots to the public by the end of next year,” Musk said, stressing that safety and human control would remain critical considerations before large-scale deployment.
On autonomous vehicles, the Tesla boss claimed the company’s Full Self-Driving (FSD) software has reached a level of maturity that has prompted insurers to offer “significant discounts” to users of the technology.
He also disclosed that Tesla is seeking regulatory approval to expand supervised self-driving operations across Europe as early as next month, with China expected to follow.
“If regulated and supervised, it will be widespread,” Musk said, reiterating his vision of a future dominated by driverless vehicles and significantly reduced road accidents.
Shortly after his remarks, Tesla announced the launch of its Robotaxi service in Austin, Texas, marking the company’s first public operation of fully driverless rides without a human safety driver in the vehicle.
Confirming the development in a post on X (formerly Twitter), Musk wrote: “Just started Tesla Robotaxi drives in Austin with no safety monitor in the car. Congrats to the @Tesla_AI team!”
The move represents a major milestone in Tesla’s autonomous driving ambitions, allowing passengers to travel without anyone behind the wheel.