Elon Musk Predicts AI Will Surpass Human Intelligence Within Five Years

Founder of xAI, Elon Musk, has once again made startling predictions about the future of artificial intelligence (AI), forecasting that its capabilities will surpass the combined intelligence of all humans within just five years. The Tesla and X boss further suggested that humanity could lose full control over the advanced technology within a decade, rendering people increasingly powerless in the technological era. Speaking to The Economist’s Editor-in-Chief, Zanny Minton Beddoes, Musk stated that AI development is on a trajectory to outperform humans in almost every intellectual field. ‘There is essentially nothing that AI cannot do better than a human, perhaps except being human itself,’ Musk said. ‘The most likely scenario is an era of extraordinary abundance where anyone can get whatever they imagine. This might sound silly, but this is where we are in 2026. Let’s see where we are in 2036.’ Despite consistently warning of the existential dangers of AI, Musk admitted he is now realistic, believing there is no effective way to halt the momentum of AI and robotics development. ‘I don’t see a way to really stop this incredible momentum. Sometimes I think, even if there were a pause button, we probably shouldn’t press it. Because the potential outcome is extraordinary abundance for everyone,’ he explained. As a solution, he urged global AI giants to regularly convene to discuss safety issues. He proposed a limited early access scheme where competing AI labs could test each other’s frontier models to detect potential dangers before public release, with governments stepping in only if a party refuses to cooperate. During the discussion, Musk also took aim at his long-time rival, OpenAI CEO Sam Altman, criticising the firm’s transformation from a non-profit, open-source organisation into a closed-source business valued at US$800 billion. This follows a California jury’s rejection of Musk’s US$150 billion lawsuit against OpenAI, Altman, and Greg Brockman over the alleged abandonment of the original non-profit mission. In contrast, Musk praised Anthropic founder Dario Amodei as a principled figure who cares about the world’s future, claiming the company was born from a lack of trust in Altman’s leadership. He noted that no one at Anthropic had triggered his ‘evil detector’. Musk concluded by emphasising the need to set aside personal egos for the safety of human civilisation from the threat of AI.