Thursday, January 22, 2026 - Elon Musk has claimed that medical degrees will soon be pointless as AI-powered robots will outperform human surgeons.
The Tesla and SpaceX CEO claimed that humanoid robots like
Tesla’s Optimus will outperform the world’s best surgeons within three
years.
Speaking on the Moonshots podcast hosted by Peter
Diamandis, Musk argued that human doctors are slow to train, prone to error,
and fundamentally limited.
“Right now there’s a shortage of doctors and great
surgeons,” Musk said.
“[It takes] a super long time to learn how to be a good
doctor Doctors have limited time, they make mistakes. How many great surgeons
are there? Not that many,” he added.
“So don’t go to medical school?” Diamandis asked Musk.
“Yes. Pointless,” Musk replied.
It wasn’t the first time Musk had predicted the end of human
surgeons. In April 2025, he had already claimed that robots would soon master
surgery, pointing to Neuralink’s robot, which implants ultra-thin electrodes
into the human brain with a level of precision difficult for human hands to
achieve.
While robotic surgery is advancing rapidly, experts warn
that medicine cannot function without human judgement, accountability and
ethical responsibility.
Elon Musk on AI and robotics impact on medical care
— Tesla Owners Silicon Valley (@teslaownersSV) January 23, 2026
“Everyone will have access to medical care that is better than what the president receives right now. So don't go to medical school? Yes, pointless.”
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