Elon Musk's Bombshell Medical Prediction: Tesla Billionaire Predicts Robots Will Surpass Best Human Surgeons in 5 Years
Elon Musk claimed robots will replace human surgeons in five years.
April 28 2025, Published 2:45 p.m. ET
Elon Musk has made a bold prediction about the future of health care, RadarOnline.com can reveal.
The Tesla CEO said his company's robots will surpass and outperform "good human surgeons within five years."
Musk responded to an X post about the advancements in surgical robotics.
Musk, 53, issued the claim in response to an X post by influencer Mario Nawfal, who highlighted the growing capabilities of surgical robots including Neuralink's robot which implants brain-computer interface electrodes.
The tech mogul wrote: "Robots will surpass good human surgeons within a few years and the best human surgeons within 5 years.
"Neuralink had to use a robot for the brain-computer electrode insertion, as it was impossible for a human to achieve the required speed and precision."
X users called out Musk's post for being 'misleading' and 'false.'
While Nawfal's post included data from a report on robots in surgery, which suggested there was room for opportunity for robots to grow as tools used by surgeons, Musk's reply sparked a fierce debate on robots replacing doctors.
Dr. Sankar Adusumilli, who has experience using robotics in surgery, branded Musk's claims "misleading."
He explained: "Robots are Not actually doing the Surgery, Surgeon is doing it with console using the robot as sophisticated tool.
"Surgeon makes every move, robot extends that move and refines it. They are Great Tools, But Not Surgeons !! I have done more than 2400 Robot assisted surgeries for complex GI diseases. I cannot let Robot to make intricate decisions- since Every patient is different!!"
Other critics said robotics should replace 'greedy' politicians.
Another X user dismissed Musk's prediction due to his recent "insane" claims.
They wrote: "Yeah, I think I'll stick with humans for awhile. You have made some insane claims as of late and none turned out to be true."
A second surgeon chimed in and labeled Musk's claims "false."
The doctor wrote: "This is false. As a neurosurgeon, I promise you that no "robot" surgeon can EVER autonomously perform brain and spine surgery or likely any surgeries effectively, appropriately or safely. Too many variables require critical thinking. "Also, none will have compassion or judgement of an ethical, human-focussed surgeon who cares about patients more than biased, utilitarian algorithm compliance."
Some users highlighted the dangers of robots replacing humans, including unemployment and technical challenges.
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A fourth echoed: "Current surgical robots are advanced tools for surgeons and cannot perform ANY surgeries on their own. Your comment makes it sound like current surgical robots can work autonomously, and that the tweet you quoted is supporting that idea. It isn’t.
"Current fully autonomous robot surgeons = 0. So we’ve got to go from zero to “surpassing the best human surgeons”? No way. Eventually you’ll be right but this is just AI hype."
Meanwhile, some X users took a swing at Musk's recent political endeavors, teaming up with President Donald Trump and leading the newly formed Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE) despite having zero political experience.
One user wrote: "We need robots to surpass politicians. We need robots that can’t be lobbied and succumb to greed."
Others pushed back on the idea and noted how many people would lose their jobs to robots, while some argued potential dangers.
A follower wrote: "It's all fun and games until the hospital has to call tech support in India, wait 10 minutes for someone to pick up, and then hear 'well, did you try turning it off and turning it on again?' while you are bleeding out stuck under that broken contraption."
