Episode 381: Elon Musk Says Stop Saving for Retirement Because of A.I. (Good Advice?)

David McKnight dissects Elon Musk's recent claims that, because of AI robotics and automation, the future will have such hyperabundance that ordinary people may no longer need to save for retirement.  In Musk's future, robots are going to do all the work, AI will create prosperity, and society will provide everything you need at a little or no – cost. While David likes Musk's vision for the future, he doesn't agree with him on this one. When examined through the lens of economics, government obligations, and retirement realities, Musk's idea of the future collapses. David identifies five specific reasons why that will happen. The first reason, and perhaps the biggest flaw in Musk's argument, is that AI productivity doesn't automatically translate into personal wealth.  David points out that, during major technological revolutions, productivity increases faster than wages, capital investors capture most of the gains, and wealth becomes more concentrated at the top. In the most optimisti...