Elon Musk has been issuing warnings on population collapse for several countries. Names include South Korea, Singapore and Japan. In fact so much so that, Musk said in a post that Singapore will go extinct in some time. He issued similar warnings for South Korea and Japan — though not as extreme as that for Singapore.
In a recent post on the issue, Elon Musk quoted a graph originally posted by the Tesla Owners Silicon Valley account. The post, captioned “Population collapse is humanity’s greatest threat… Elon Musk,” received a confirming “Yes” from Musk himself.
The Statistica graph projects significant population declines for both India and China. India’s population is projected to decrease by approximately 400 million by 2100, while China’s is expected to drop by 731 million, reaching 731.9 million. In contrast, Nigeria’s population is projected to grow substantially, potentially surpassing China’s by the end of the century.
This exchange highlights Musk’s repeated warnings about the potential dangers of population decline, which he attributes to factors such as falling fertility rates, aging populations, and emigration. He has previously stated that “Population collapse is coming,” emphasizing the potential threat to the global economy and development.
‘Population collapse a much bigger risk to civilization than global warming”
Musk has consistently warned about the potential economic and technological consequences of a declining global population. He has advocated for policies that encourage higher birth rates, particularly in aging societies like those in Europe and Japan, where low fertility is already impacting economic growth.
In the year 2022, he called population collapse a bigger danger than global warming. “Population collapse due to low birth rates is a much bigger risk to civilization than global warming,” he wrote in a series of tweets. “Mark these words,” he wrote in another. Also went on to add that this in no way means that global warming is not a threat. “(And I do think global warming is a major risk),” he added.
Several factors contribute to this trend, most notably the global decline in fertility rates. Many countries now have fertility rates below the 2.1 replacement rate needed for population stability. For instance, England and Wales recorded a record low of 1.44 children per woman in 2023. Globally, fertility rates have halved since 1963, dropping from an average of 5.3 children per woman to less than 2.5.
