Tech billionaire Elon Musk has suggested that medical degrees could soon become obsolete, predicting that artificial intelligence powered robots will outperform human surgeons in the near future.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO made the claim while speaking on the Moonshots podcast hosted by Peter Diamandis. According to Musk, humanoid robots such as Tesla’s Optimus are on track to surpass even the world’s best surgeons within the next three years.
Musk argued that the medical profession faces inherent limitations, noting that doctors take a long time to train, are prone to human error, and are constrained by time and physical endurance.
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“Right now there’s a shortage of doctors and great surgeons,” Musk said. “It takes a super long time to learn how to be a good doctor. Doctors have limited time, they make mistakes. How many great surgeons are there? Not that many.”
When Diamandis asked if this meant people should stop going to medical school, Musk bluntly replied, “Yes. Pointless.”
Despite rapid advances in robotic surgery, medical experts continue to caution that healthcare cannot function without human judgment, ethical decision-making, and professional accountability.