"Not afraid to die, will come as a relief": Elon Musk

Elon Musk attends the opening of the Tesla Gigafactory for electric cars in Gruenheide, Germany. (file)

new Delhi:

SpaceX and Tesla CEO Elon Musk doesn’t have to worry about one thing: a long lifespan. In a recent interview with Mathias Döpner, CEO of Axel Springer at Tesla’s factory in Fremont, California, Mr. Musk discussed a range of topics when he made a comment on longevity.

Mr Musk said he would like to maintain his health for a long time, but he is not afraid to die. “I’m not afraid to die. I think it will come as a relief,” he said.

When asked about “longevity” and “a markedly increased life span”, Mr. Musk gave a straightforward answer.

Mr. Musk’s response was, “I don’t think we should try to get people to live really long. It would cause the asphyxiation of society because the truth is that most people don’t change their mind. They just die.” So, if they do not die, we will be stuck with old ideas and society will not move forward.”

Other issues they discussed included the Russia-Ukraine crisis, space exploration and even loneliness. He said that he’s sure everyone felt lonely at times, and he went on to add, for example, that if he wasn’t working on the Starship Rocket and was at home himself, he might have missed his dog. . “I feel quite alone because I am in a small house on my own with no dogs,” said Mr. Musk.

Mr Musk believes a “gerontocracy” is unhealthy, in which the government is largely controlled by people who are older than the majority of the population. Stating that the US had a “very, very ancient leadership”, he said it was “impossible for leaders to keep in touch with the people”.

It is in this context that he stated that although America’s founders had set a minimum age to hold local office, they did not include a maximum age, because they did not anticipate that humans would live that long. “I think for political leadership, you ideally want to be within 10 or at least 20 years of the average age of the population,” Musk said.

On a lighter note, when Mr. Dofner said that Mr. Musk “might not be able to realize SpaceX’s vision” in his life, the Tesla CEO responded by saying, “I’ve been waiting for a long time to see it.” I want to live till then.”

On the Russia-Ukraine conflict, Mr Musk said the US government had done a lot, but added, “We cannot let Putin take over Ukraine.”