The essence of future currency is watt

In a podcast interview in early 2026, Musk put forward his core viewpoint, arguing that the essence of future currency is the watt (a unit of electricity).

Musk's core viewpoint that "the currency of the future is watts" stems from his insight into the underlying logic of the AI era - electricity is replacing chips as the ultimate bottleneck in the AI race.

1. Core logic: Energy becomes the new value anchor

Hard constraints in the AI era:

• The power consumption for training large models and running computing clusters has surged, for example, ChatGPT consumes over 500,000 kWh of electricity daily (equivalent to the annual electricity consumption of 50 American households).After chip performance improvement encounters physical limits, power supply becomes a key bottleneck restricting the development of AI.
• Musk pointed out directly: "The primary constraints of AI are power and cooling. Those who can solve these within 2 years will win the 'AI war'."

Reconstruction of the essence of money:

• Traditional currency relies on the "value of labor" as its anchor, but AI and robots will eliminate the demand for human labor, and the marginal cost of material production will approach zero.
• Energy (in watts) serves as a more reliable unit of measurement due to its physical scarcity, a globally unified standard of measurement (one kilowatt-hour is equivalent globally), and its immutability, making it an unforgeable unit of value.

2. The power gap between China and the United States reshapes the AI competition landscape

 China's three leading advantages:

• Scale crushing:By 2025, China's electricity generation will exceed 10 trillion kWh, more than double that of the United States. Its installed electricity generation capacity will reach 3.75 terawatts, nearly three times that of the United States.
• Infrastructure efficiency: UHV transmission technology has achieved "power transmission from the west to the east" with the lowest loss rate globally, while 70% of the power grid equipment in the United States is in overdue service, and capacity expansion requires 5-10 years of approval.
• Cost control: The electricity prices in places like Inner Mongolia are only half of those in the United States, attracting companies like Apple to relocate their data centers.

The realistic predicament of the United States:

• When Musk's xAI was building a computing power center in Tennessee, it was forced to purchase its own gas turbines to supply power due to the grid's inability to handle the load.
• Goldman Sachs predicts that the power deficit of US data centers will reach up to 47 GW in 2028, equivalent to the total electricity consumption of nine Miami cities.

3. Social and Investment Impacts: From Disruption to Reconstruction

Transition period of economic system:

• Within 3-7 years, AI will replace most white-collar jobs, triggering a "hellish turbulence" (wave of unemployment, social unrest).
• Long-term trend towards "universal high income": AI creates wealth and distributes it automatically, making labor optional rather than essential for survival.

Shift in investment logic:

• Energy infrastructure: Grid upgrades (such as ultra-high voltage and transformers) and energy storage technologies (like Tesla's Megapack) have emerged as core growth sectors.
• Key materials: Copper demand surges (due to power grid construction), silver (for photovoltaic conductivity). Gold due to the weakening or depreciation of credit currencies.
• Be vigilant against the risk of "chip idling": If there is insufficient power, high-priced chips will become useless.

4. Controversies and Challenges

• Technical feasibility: Electricity is difficult to store and cross-border circulate, making it more likely to be a "value benchmark" rather than a transaction currency.
• Ambitions in space energy: Musk plans to deploy space solar power stations through SpaceX, harnessing the unlimited radiation energy of the universe, but faces challenges such as cosmic rays damaging chips and high maintenance costs.

Conclusion

Musk's prophecy serves as a warning for the leapfrog development of civilization: When AI converts energy into productivity, "watt" becomes the key to upgrading civilization. Leveraging its advanced energy network, China is quietly gaining the right to mint this "currency of the future".