“Money is useless”? Why Musk’s 2036 prediction could completely reshape Bitcoin’s fate

Byline: Billy Bambrough, Forbes

Compiled by: AididiaoJP, Foresight News

Since the beginning of this year, the Bitcoin and crypto markets have spent most of the time trading sideways and range-bound. Traders are on edge, constantly on alert for sudden, potentially brutal shocks.

In February, the Bitcoin price briefly fell below $65k per coin, after which it slid into a downward channel and failed to escape its predicament for a long time. Even after the recent sudden remarks from Goldman Sachs CEO that he has started to support Bitcoin’s “ultimate catalyst,” market sentiment has not quickly recovered.

At present, Bitcoin is accelerating toward a major turning point that could be worth $27.9 trillion. At this critical moment, SpaceX and Tesla’s helmsman and billionaire Elon Musk delivered a game-changing prediction: in just ten years, money will “no longer matter.” This statement could have far-reaching implications for the Bitcoin price.

“By 2036, money will no longer matter.” Musk said this in an interview with The Economist’s editor Zanny Minton Beddoes. The interview covered a wide range of topics, and he made a clear prediction that the world will transition to a state of “incredible abundance” over the next decade.

“What do you need money for?” Musk countered. The tech mogul, who became the world’s first trillionaire after SpaceX’s IPO on June 12 and whose net worth is still around $700 billion, pointed out that robots will be widely adopted at scale, people’s needs will be effortlessly met, and by then, all money will essentially become worthless.

“Don’t you need money just to buy goods and services? Food, housing, transportation, entertainment—everything like that costs money.” Musk explained, “But if robots and the goods and services provided by artificial intelligence are so plentiful that they exceed the limits of anything humans can consume, then what use is money?”

This prophecy is not without basis. Musk has repeatedly emphasized before that “energy is the real currency,” sparking intense speculation among Bitcoin supporters—that he may be quietly endorsing this type of cryptocurrency. In fact, his two major core companies already hold significant Bitcoin reserves: SpaceX holds 18,712 BTC, while Tesla holds 11,509 BTC.

“Energy is the real currency.” Musk once replied on the X platform to an account with the handle beffjezos. The other account posted: “If you think of money as a proxy for expected free energy, then AI is basically an infinite printing press.”

Based on the current Bitcoin price of about $65k, the combined Bitcoin value held by SpaceX and Tesla is close to $2 billion.

In October last year, Musk further elaborated on his position in an X post: “Bitcoin is based on energy. You can issue fake fiat currency—every government has done it—but energy can’t be forged.” He also agreed that the “global arms race” toward AI is precisely why the prices of gold, silver, and Bitcoin have risen together in recent years.

However, since then, the Bitcoin price has fallen noticeably. Even so, some people still believe the bottom has been confirmed and that a rebound could be launched at any time.

Bitcoin’s security mechanisms rely on miners—miners use powerful computing power to validate transactions in exchange for newly issued Bitcoin. The electricity consumed by the entire network each year is comparable to that of some small countries, and as prices rise and more miners join, energy demand continues to climb as well. This point fits neatly with Musk’s logic of “energy as currency.”

Musk’s enthusiasm for supporting crypto has cooled compared with the peak of the COVID-19 period, but he has not completely stepped away. He continues to make statements supporting Bitcoin and has repeatedly mentioned the crypto he says is his “favorite”—Dogecoin.

After stepping away from White House-related matters, Musk was even more direct, saying that his “Republican Party” would favor Bitcoin over the dollar. In his view, the dollar and other debt-based fiat currencies issued by governments are “hopeless.”

With Bitcoin still hovering at low levels and market sentiment remaining cautious, Musk’s 2036 prediction that “money becomes obsolete,” like a stone dropped into calm water, stirs up ripple after ripple. Whether this vision ultimately comes true or not, it once again puts Bitcoin in the spotlight—at a possible abundance era led by robots and AI, what truly anchors value may no longer be traditional fiat, but digital assets deeply tied to energy.