Elon Musk is the CEO of SpaceX and Telsa and essentially the real-life Tony Stark. Robert Downey Jr has even said he modeled his iconic portrayal of Iron Man after Musk. In 2016, the South African-born Canadian American mogul was ranked the 21st most powerful person in the world by Forbes. But Musk didn’t get where he is by playing it safe. Musk is known for his radical entrepreneurial ideas and determination to lead us into the future, and his ideas are often so out there that many regard him as a genius or a crazy person. In February 2018, Musk announced his plan to use a SpaceX rocket to transport people all over the world in under 30 minutes.
Over the last few years, rumors began circulating that Musk was an alien from another planet. After all, he is one of the people leading the task force to get us on Mars as soon as possible. Half of the things that come out of this mans mouth sounds like the premise of a high-budget sci-fi movie. But no matter what you think of Musk himself, it’s undeniable that he is a fascinating person with an interesting philosophy that drives his work.
Below are some of the craziest things Elon Musk believes to be true, from the fact that we are living in a simulated reality to the possibility that Aliens have been watching us for a long time.
1. Musk believes we will send humans to Mars by 2024
Speaking to Business Insider, Musk said, “The Earth-Mars orbital rendezvous is only every 26 months, so there’ll be one in 2018; there will be another one in 2020. And I think if things go according to plan, we should be able to launch people probably in 2024 with the arrival in 2025.”
2. Life On Mars Will Feature A Direct Democracy
Musk is not afraid of getting ahead of himself on the Mars front. He’s already envisioned the best case scenario for the type of government Mars would employ, saying at a Code conference: “I think most likely the form of government of Mars would be a direct democracy, not representative, so it would be people voting directly on issues. And I think that’s probably better because the potential for democracy is substantially diminished.”
3. The First People Who Colonize Mars Will Likely Die
Though Musk has admitted to wanting to die on Mars, he has no intention of being one of the first people sent over to the red planet. Warning that the first trip to Mars will be extremely dangerous, Musk told Business Insider, “The risk of fatality will be high. There’s just no way around it.”
4. We Are Living In A Simulated Reality
Elon Musk believes we are living in a simulated reality much like the Matrix or The Sims. “There’s a billion-to-one chance we’re living in base reality,” he told Business Insider. But he doesn’t think this is a bad thing. In fact, Musk considers the idea that we are living in a simulated reality to be the best case scenario as it would mean humans of the future found a way, through technology, to preserve human life outside the realities of the planet’s environment.
5. Aliens Have Been Watching Us For A Long Time
The fact that we haven’t been able to find life on other planets just means that they probably have already found us and we are under their surveillance or control. Musk has said, “The absence of any noticeable life may be an argument in favor of us being in a simulation. Like when you’re playing an adventure game, and you can see the stars in the background, but you can’t ever get there. If it’s not a simulation, then maybe we’re in a lab and there’s some advanced alien civilization that’s just watching how we develop, out of curiosity, like mold in a Petri dish.”
6. Humans Will Become House Cats To Artifical Intelligence
Musk has spoken at length about the dangers of AI. Given the advancements we’ve seen in AI, its possible that they will soon be much smarter than us, relegating us to the level of a house cat. Though he doesn’t love the idea of being a house cat, he says it’s not the worst of all fates.
7. AI is the biggest existential threat we currently face
Elon Musk thinks the biggest risk we face as a civilization. This is something both Stephen Hawking and Bill Gates have also said about the rise of artificial intelligence.
8. Human Beings Are Already Cyborgs
Musk says that humans today have more power in the palm of their hands than the president did 20 years ago.
9. Something called the “Hyperloop” is possible
Elon Musk wants to revolutionize the way we travel, and wants to create a super highway that lets us travel across the country in mere minutes. “What this is all about is advancing the state of transportation; trying new things that have never been done before that can make an incredible difference to peoples lives,” Musk said.
10. School is Useless
Musk hated school as a child and thinks a complete waste of time. Apparently, you don’t need schooling to save the world.
