The elites say money “won’t matter.” We disagree.

Did you know that Elon Musk, the world’s richest man, thinks money will soon be meaningless?

That’s what he said in January, during an interview on the Moonshots with Peter Diamandis podcast. “Don’t worry about squirreling money away for retirement in 10 or 20 years,” he declared. “It won’t matter.”

He’s made similar statements repeatedly since, including just last week to Zanny Minton Beddoes at The Economist. Musk told her that artificial intelligence-powered robots will get so good at doing what we humans do now…

We’ll all be unemployed in the next 10 years or so.

Not to worry though, he added. We’ll all receive “universal high income” in this “exhilarating and terrifying” theoretical future. And then we can spend our time on leisurely pursuits like growing tomatoes for friends.

When Beddoes pushed back, saying she didn’t see an easy transition into this financial nirvana, Musk admitted it would “be a bumpy road.” However, he pointed to several science-fiction books that offer a roadmap for how it could happen.

And when Beddoes asked where the universal high income would be coming from – and whether he’d be willing to pay more taxes to fund it – Musk responded, “I think the Treasury should simply issue people checks.”

(A cynic might have asked if money won’t matter, why isn’t he willing to give more of his up? But I digress…)

My regular readers know I’m a big fan of AI-specific stocks like Broadcom (AVGO). I’ve even made bullish cases for the high-flying Nvidia (NVDA). So I’m hardly against the technological revolution we’re experiencing today.

What I am against is giving people unrealistic expectations that keep them from achieving financial independence.

Mark my words: Money will always matter. Even if AI takes over everything in the best possible ways.

Elon Musk may be an engineering genius, but I’m not so sure about his grasp on economics. Because when Beddoes pointed out potential inflationary risks associated with government checks in that Economist interview, he waved it away.

According to him, the very concept of inflation will become irrelevant since it’s just the ratio of money to goods and services available. And a world that’s exponentially increased its production could therefore exponentially increase the amount of money it prints.

If anything, he thinks deflation will be an issue. That’s how much faith he has in AI’s capability to handle everything better than we mere humans.

Maybe that could happen. Possibly. Of course though, he’s coming from a place of extreme financial comfort as he says this – an alternative reality, even, compared to how the rest of us live.

Musk might not be a trillionaire anymore – a status he achieved after the SpaceX (SPCX) IPO that no longer applies as those shares keep falling. (Incidentally, we told you so.) Yet even with those significant losses, he’s still worth $717.7 billion.

To put that into perspective, The United Nations estimates that ending world hunger would cost $50 billion per year. Therefore, Musk could theoretically use his wealth to ensure all humans were adequately fed for the next 20 years.

So, I’m sorry, but no. I don’t think he’s one to talk about how the average Joe shouldn’t worry about retirement based on unprovable projections. And I think it’s entirely irresponsible for Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent to agree with Musk on the subject, even in part.

Which is precisely what he did while talking with Sean Hannity on Fox News earlier this week.

Now, Bessent did add that it might take longer than 20 years to reach a jobless economy, calling Musk “just so far ahead of the curve. He sees things that no one else sees. But I do think we are building this incredible economy that we can’t even imagine.”

Since there’s no hard proof to support even his more moderate position, that’s called speculation. And speculation is a great way to end up in very unhappy financial places.

That’s not something I want for any of us.

Let’s flip the script though.

Let’s say all the AI doomers and gloomers are 100% wrong. That Musk’s utopian outlook will indeed come to light within the next 20 years. And that new technologies will advance humans into a new age of unlimited abundance.

Even so, there’s still a problem with this “money won’t matter” mindset.

Sure, fleets of robots with artificial superintelligence (ASI) could increase agricultural yields to the point where hunger is no longer an issue. Heck, I can even imagine a future where such systems could produce infinitely abundant, incredibly tasty food formulas straight out of Willy Wonka-style factories.

But that still doesn’t mean everything can be created out of thin air.

AI won’t be able to change the natural laws of physics. It can’t expand the literal world.

So even in a reality where most goods and services are unlimited, certain things – such as, say, land – will still be in short supply.

I know that Musk is also hoping to colonize Mars. And there’s talk about making bases on the moon as well. But we’re still decades, if not centuries, away from expanding human civilization beyond Earth like that.

In which case, even in a “high universal income” world, I remain bullish on real estate. Like 19th-century American novelist Mark Twain once (probably) said, “Buy land. They’re not making it anymore.”

That’s especially good advice when attached to attractive urban areas and cultural centers where unique, in-person recreation is plentiful… on ski slopes or alongside beaches… or simply in temperate climates where life is most enjoyable.

Human beings are interactive creatures, after all. So in a world where we’re all unemployed and get to spend our days doing whatever we want…

Most of us are going to want to live in enjoyable places. It’s as simple as that.

Therefore, unless land ownership is completely outlawed and nationalized by our new AI overlords, demand will always outpace supply for attractive real estate. And that right there is why money will always matter.

In fact, real estate could end up being one of the biggest long-term beneficiaries of the AI boom because it’s so unduplicatable.

Simply put, I can put my sci-fi hat on and imagine a world where a lot of things lose their value because of rapid commoditization. But not physical property.

That’s here to stay. No matter what Elon Musk says.

Best wishes,

Soon-to-be full-time gardener, Nick Ward

P.S. If you share my outlook, now might be the time to start thinking about investment properties or real estate investment trusts (REITs). Brad and I actively manage a REIT portfolio as part of our Wide Moat Letter subscription.

If you’re interested in our top AI-safe picks, feel free to check that service out today!

Big Tech earnings season is in full swing, with obvious short-term winners and losers.

Microsoft (MSFT) impressed, for example. Meta (META) did not, showing no proof to increasingly skeptical shareholders that its AI investments will pay off.

It’s easy to get reactionary when stocks are climbing 9% here or sliding 9% there in a single morning. But that’s why The Wide Moat Show is digging into the details on six particular forward-looking plays.

These stocks have intriguing profit potential backed by solid fundamentals – not just hope or hype. Click here to see what Brad and Nick uncovered this week, including a hyperscaler you may have overlooked.