Musk: AI Could Surpass Total Human Intelligence Within 5 Years, Admits “Getting Carried Away” with Politics

Odaily reported that Elon Musk recently sat down for an interview with Zanny Minton Beddoes, Editor-in-Chief of The Economist, to discuss topics including superintelligent AI, politics, and AI regulation.

Musk predicted that artificial intelligence will surpass the combined intelligence of all human beings within roughly the next 5 years, stating that by then, AI will outperform humans in almost every field, except for “being human itself.” He believes AI could usher in an “unprecedented era of abundance,” allowing people to obtain virtually anything they desire.

Discussing AI risks, Musk reiterated his previous assessment that the probability of AI leading to human extinction is around 10% to 20%. However, he noted that as the advancement of AI and robotics technology has become irreversible, he has now come to accept this reality, adding that his current attitude is to “enjoy the ride,” and that even if a “pause button” existed, it wouldn't necessarily be the right move to press it.

Musk admitted he “got a bit too carried away with politics, and even became somewhat obsessive (got carried away).” Nevertheless, he defended his previous work pushing for the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) to cut fiscal spending, stating that his goal was to reduce government waste and fraudulent expenditures.

Regarding AI governance, Musk suggested that major AI labs such as OpenAI, xAI, and Anthropic should hold regular safety meetings to mutually assess potential risks before releasing new models. He believes that competitors are better positioned than governments to identify problems in each other's models.

Additionally, Musk once again criticized OpenAI's transition from a non-profit organization to a closed-source for-profit company, and reiterated his displeasure with OpenAI CEO Sam Altman. At the same time, he praised Anthropic co-founder and CEO Dario Amodei as “a man of great principle,” and stated that if necessary, AI companies should “set aside personal grievances to cooperate for the good of the world.”

During the interview, Musk also insisted that budget cuts to the U.S. Agency for International Development (USAID) “haven't caused any deaths” and denied related criticisms, drawing skepticism from the interviewer. (BusinessInsider)