Elon Musk has told a G20 gathering that artificial intelligence could expand the global economy by 20% to 30%, adding an estimated $20 trillion to $30 trillion in annual output…reports Asian Lite News Desk
Elon Musk has predicted that artificial intelligence and humanoid robots could drive a sharp expansion of the global economy, while transforming work across digital and labour-intensive industries.
The Tesla and SpaceX chief executive outlined his forecasts during a video address to the G20 summit of central bank governors and finance ministers in Asheville, North Carolina.
Musk said the productivity benefits of artificial intelligence were already becoming visible and could eventually add tens of trillions of dollars to annual global economic output.
“To give you a sense of the scale, I think AI could grow the global economy by 20% to 30% — that’s my rough estimate — which means roughly $20 trillion to $30 trillion per year in additional output,” he said.
Musk also set out an ambitious timetable for the development of the technology. He predicted that AI systems would be able to complete all work conducted entirely within the digital domain by the end of next year.
He described this as work that does not require people to use their hands to shape or manipulate physical objects. The forecast would cover a wide range of tasks in areas such as software development, engineering and other digitally based professions.
In coding, Musk said AI could reach a level comparable with the Stockfish chess engine as early as next year. Stockfish has demonstrated the extent to which machines can outperform human competitors in chess, and Musk suggested a similar shift could take place in software development.
He forecast that AI capabilities across coding, engineering and other digital disciplines would reach advanced levels within the next 12 to 18 months, making it increasingly difficult for human workers to compete with the technology on certain tasks.
Musk was even more optimistic about the economic potential of humanoid robots. He predicted that the number operating around the world would exceed one billion within the next decade.
Each robot could deliver productivity at least five times that of a human worker, he said. On that basis, Musk suggested the widespread adoption of humanoid machines could eventually increase the size of the global economy more than tenfold.
Such growth would have significant consequences for manufacturing, logistics and service industries, where robots could take on a growing share of physical work. It could also reshape labour markets and increase demand for investment in computing, robotics and energy infrastructure.
Musk warned that electricity supply was emerging as a serious constraint on AI development. He estimated that AI chips could face a power shortfall of at least 15 gigawatts by 2027.
He attributed the potential gap to annual growth of between 40% and 50% in AI chip production, which he said was running far ahead of the construction of new electricity infrastructure. The warning highlighted the pressure that expanding data centres and computing systems could place on energy networks.
Musk also called for a more permissive regulatory approach to AI and other emerging technologies. He said new technologies should be treated as “legal by default” rather than “illegal by default”, arguing that regulators should avoid creating unnecessary barriers to innovation.
His projections remain forecasts and will depend on the speed of technological development, infrastructure investment, commercial adoption and government policy. Whether G20 officials incorporate his views into their economic planning remains uncertain, but his remarks placed productivity, energy capacity and regulation at the centre of the debate over AI’s economic impact.
