Humanoid robots for sale in 2 years, AI smarter than all humanity collectively in 5: Musk to WEF

Humanoid robots will go on sale in two years, and in five years AI will become smarter than all of humanity collectively, predicts Elon Musk at the World Economic Forum (WEF) Annual Meeting in Davos.

Speaking with BlackRock CEO and WEF interim co-chair Larry Fink, Musk talked at length about AI, robotics, solar powered data centers in space, and human longevity.

With regards to his own companies, Musk said that he believed he’d be selling humanoid robots commercially by the end of 2027 as that’s when they’d be highly reliable, safe, and have a great range of function.

“I’d say by the end of next year, I think, we’ll be selling humanoid robots to the public […] That’s when we’re confident that [..] the range of functionality is also very high. You can basically ask it to do anything you’d like”

Elon Musk, WEF Annual Meeting, January 2026

With the end of 2027 being the projected date for the start of humanoid robot sales, Musk predicted that eventually everyone on earth would have a robot.

These robots would “saturate all human needs” like taking care of kids, pets, and the elderly.

And just like with mobile devices, there will one day be more humanoid robots than people, according to Musk.

“My prediction is, in the benign scenario of the future, we’ll actually make so many robots and AI that they will actually saturate all human needs,” Musk told Fink.

“You won’t even be able to think of something to ask the robot for at a certain point; there will be such an abundance of goods and services.”

“My prediction is that there will be more robots than people”

Elon Musk, WEF Annual Meeting, January 2026

“If you have billions of humanoid robots, and I think there will be, I think everyone on earth is going to have one and going to want one,” Musk continued.

“Who wouldn’t want a robot to — assuming it’s very safe — watch over your kids, take care of your pets […] If you had a robot that could take care of and protect an elderly parent, I think that’d be great; that would be an amazing thing to have.”

When Musk told Fink that humanoid robots would saturate all human needs without people ever having to ask for anything, this would most likely be due in large part to the advancement of AI and its predictive capabilities.

By 2031 at the latest, Musk predicts that AI will surpass all collective human intelligence.

“The rate at which AI is progressing I think we might have AI that is smarter than any human by the end of this year, and I would say no later than next year”

Elon Musk, WEF Annual Meeting, January 2026

“Probably by 2030 or 2031 — call it five years from now — AI will be smarter than all of humanity collectively”

Elon Musk, WEF Annual Meeting, January 2026

The energy required to power billions of humanoid robots and the AI systems running them will be enormous.

For Musk, harnessing the power of the sun is the best way to go, but not from earth.

Solar powered AI data centers in space wouldn’t have to grapple with the changing seasons, weather patterns, atmospheric conditions, or even gravity.

In space, the solar panels can always be facing the sun, while their back sides can be exposed the chilling darkness of space for their cooling needs.

“It’s a no brainer for building solar powered AI data centers in space […] Net effect is that the lowest cost place to put AI will be space, and that will be true in two years, maybe three”

Elon Musk, WEF Annual Meeting, January 2026

“The net effect is that any given solar panel will do five times more energy in space than on the ground,” said Musk.

“It’s a no brainer for building solar powered AI data centers in space. It’s also very cold in space. If you’re in the shadow, it’s very cold in space — it’s 3 degrees Kelvin.

“So, you just have solar panels facing the sun and then a radiator that’s pointed away from the sun […] and it’s a very efficient cooling system.

“Net effect is that the lowest cost place to put AI will be space, and that will be true in two years, maybe three.”

If Musk is correct in his predictions, AI will be smarter than any human by the end of 2026, and humanoid robots will go on sale by the end of 2027.

Eventually, there’ll be billions of humanoid robots that will be smarter than all people on earth combined.

And the AI systems giving these robots “intelligence” will be powered by off-planet data centers in space.

The WEF Annual Meeting 2026 took place from January 19-23 under the theme “A Spirit of Dialogue.”

In the spirit of dialogue the WEF restricted replies from accounts it didn’t mention on its X profile, guaranteeing that no public dialogue could take place in that space.

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Image Source: Screenshot of Elon Musk and Larry Fink at the WEF Annual Meeting, January 22, 2026