Want CNET to notify you of price drops and the latest stories?
No, thank you Accept
X
WWDC: Everything We ExpectRemote Working in ParadiseBest Mineral SunscreensBest Solar CompaniesCNET CouponsMeal Subscription vs. TakeoutBest Satellite Internet ProvidersCurrent Mortgage Rates

Elon Musk says AI will make jobs irrelevant

Get a job writing AI software, he recommends. Until AI takes that over, too.

abrar-al-heeti2
abrar-al-heeti2
Abrar Al-Heeti Video producer / CNET
Abrar Al-Heeti is a video host and producer for CNET, with an interest in internet trends, entertainment, pop culture and digital accessibility. Before joining the video team, she was a writer for CNET's culture team. She graduated with bachelor's and master's degrees in journalism from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. Though Illinois is home, she now loves San Francisco -- steep inclines and all.
Expertise Abrar has spent her career at CNET breaking down the latest trends on TikTok, Twitter and Instagram, while also reporting on diversity and inclusion initiatives in Hollywood and Silicon Valley. Credentials
  • Named a Tech Media Trailblazer by the Consumer Technology Association in 2019, a winner of SPJ NorCal's Excellence in Journalism Awards in 2022 and has twice been a finalist in the LA Press Club's National Arts & Entertainment Journalism Awards.
See full bio
Abrar Al-Heeti
gettyimages-1157175931

AI will make jobs pointless, Elon Musk says.

 Getty Images

Elon Musk may be one of the biggest names in tech, but his views on how artificial intelligence will affect jobs aren't so rosy. 

"AI will make jobs kind of pointless," the CEO said Thursday at the World Artificial Intelligence Conference in Shanghai. "Probably the last job that will remain will be writing AI software, and then eventually the AI will just write its own software."

Musk suggested people study things like engineering, physics, art or careers that involve people interacting with each other. 

"People enjoy, fundamentally, interacting with other people," he said. "So if you're working on something that involves people, or engineering, it's probably a good approach."

There's plenty of debate over whether AI will take over our jobs, with one report earlier this year finding that robots could replace humans in a quarter of US jobs by 2030. Additionally, the report found that jobs with "predictable physical and cognitive tasks" are most vulnerable, while those that are more creative or require higher interpersonal social skills or higher education are safer from an AI takeover.