But only if civilization is “stable”.
There are about 8.1 billion people on earth as of January, 2024, according to Worldometer.
Does that leave enough room for a billion or so humanoid robots going forward?
Elon Musk, along with some other technology leading lights, thinks so.
David Holz, founder of Midjourney, an artificial intelligence research organization, got the ball rolling with a prediction last week that the world would see a robot explosion in the next few decades.
“We should be expecting a billion humanoid robots on earth in the 2040s and a hundred billion (mostly alien) robots throughout the solar system in the 2060s,” Holz noted last week in an X post.
Responding to the post, Musk concurred, saying “Probably something like that, provided the foundations of civilization are stable.”
Optimus Primed
Robots are already among us, serving as surgical assistants in hospitals and stacking warehouse goods, among other tasks, and they’re rising fast.
Under Musk’s stewardship, Tesla has already built the Tesla Optimus, a humanoid bot that is designed to handle tasks on the job or in the home that humans prefer not to do.
Speaking on Optimus in October, 2022 at a company event, Musk said, “I think it has the potential to be more significant than the vehicle business over time.” Tesla has plans for marketing the Optimus bot for $20,000 each, although a commercial rollout is rumored to be several years away.
Musk has high hopes for Optimus and human robots in general going forward.
“There’s still a lot of work to be done to refine Optimus,” he noted in the 2022 presentation. “I think Optimus is going to be incredible in five or 10 years” . . . “it should be extremely capable.”
Optimus, and other humanoid bots, should be here soon enough if Tusk, Holz, and the bot industry know what they’re talking about.
Whether actual humans are ready or not.

Brian O’Connell, a former Wall Street bond trader and best-selling author, is a prominent figure in the finance industry. With a substantial background as an ex-Wall Street trader, he has authored two best-selling books: ‘The 401k Millionaire’ and ‘CNBC’s Creating Wealth’, demonstrating his profound knowledge of finance and investing.
Brian is also a finance and business writer for esteemed national platforms and publications, including CNN, TheStreet.com, CBS News, The Wall Street Journal, U.S. News & World Report, Forbes, and Fox News.