Tech billionaire Elon Musk opened up about the three troubling things that keep him up at night and the one thing that is his biggest source of joy.
Speaking at the Milken Institute's 27th Global Conference, the Tesla Inc. CEO voiced his concerns about the human civilization's future. He has talked about it quite often in the past, too, but Musk dived into more detail during his conversation with Mike Milken.
So, what keeps the third richest person in the world up at night?
1. Civilizational Risk Due To Falling Birth Rates
Musk has been vocal about the decline of humanity due to plummeting birth rates. He ranked it amongst the top issues that keep him up at night.
"You know… birth rates [are] continuing to plummet. I do think about the birth rates plummeting as being a civilizational risk."
Musk has talked about "population collapse" as a "bigger risk to humanity than global warming." He wants a billion Americans and thinks that there is an impending crisis due to low birth rates.
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2. Threats To Democracy
Next up on Musk's "keeping me up at night" issues are threats to the idea of democracy.
Reacting to independent presidential candidate Robert F. Kennedy Jr., Musk blamed the "far left machine" instead of President Joe Biden for creating a "much worse threat" to democracy than former President Donald Trump.
He has called out censorship in the past, and even acquired Twitter, now X, in the name of free speech.
3. Threats To Merit-Based System
The third issue that's keeping Musk up at night is what he thinks are "threats" to a merit-based system.
"Anything that's leading us away from a merit-based system is a risk."
Musk has talked about it in the past when actor Richard Dreyfuss said that changes to the Academy Award rules "Make me vomit."
This drew a reaction from Musk, who said, "Any organization that puts quotas above merit, instantly devalues their awards."
Here's Musk's Biggest Source Of Joy
Musk opened up about the happy side of things in his life, saying that his kids give him joy.
"I probably get the most joy from my kids. I'm not saying that's the reason to have kids… kids are the greatest source of joy in my life."
The Tesla CEO has 11 children.
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