Thousands of artificial intelligences are already working together to tackle a problem that challenges current science—but what if that is merely a small demonstration of what is to come? Elon Musk believes we are very close to crossing an even more significant threshold.

In an interview with *The Economist*, he stated that within approximately five years, artificial intelligence will be capable of surpassing not only the intellectual capacity of any single human being but the combined intelligence of all humanity. It is an extraordinary prediction; even coming from someone known for making bold technological projections, it carries extra weight when we consider what these systems are already achieving.

For Elon Musk, current progress is moving so rapidly that there may be no practical way to simply halt it. Companies are building increasingly powerful models, new generations are emerging at ever-shorter intervals, and each breakthrough can be used to accelerate the development of the next. Yet, the interviewer then pushed the question to its most unsettling conclusion: if artificial systems continue to grow more intelligent, how long will humans truly remain in control?

Musk’s response was even more radical: he believes that within a timeframe of roughly ten years, we could reach a point where artificial intelligence is so far superior to our own that the concept of human control begins to lose some of its current meaning. This does not mean Elon Musk is claiming that machines will inevitably take over the planet.

The discussion centers on a widening capability gap, and it is precisely here that a question arises—one that had long been overshadowed by another. For years, we debated when artificial intelligence might surpass human capability; yet, if Elon Musk is right, we may be approaching a moment where the most critical question becomes: what happens after that occurs? How do we oversee an intelligence capable of analyzing problems, developing strategies, and generating knowledge at speeds far exceeding those of any human group?

How do we ensure it continues to pursue goals compatible with our own? And, above all, how do we maintain control over something that is intellectually far more capable than we are? That is precisely why an increasing portion of the discourse on artificial intelligence is shifting away from a focus solely on capability and toward the issue of control.