‘Extinction Event’ or Multiplanetary Exploration
Claim:
SpaceX CEO Elon Musk said, “The future of humanity is going to bifurcate in two directions: Either it’s going to become multiplanetary, or it’s going to remain confined to one planet, and eventually, there’s going to be an extinction event.”
Rating:
Rating: Correct Attribution
Context:
Musk made this statement during an interview at All Thing D’s D11 conference in May 2013. The exact spoken quote was, “If you think about the future of humanity, it’s going to fundamentally bifurcate in two directions, all life as we know it. Either it’s going to become multiplanetary, or it’s going to be confined to one planet, until some eventual extinction event.”
A rumor circulated online in late 2024 claiming Elon Musk once pondered the future of humanity facing two options: an “extinction event” or the achievement of multiplanetary exploration.
For example, on Nov. 21, 2024, a user on X posted (archived) that Musk once said, “The future of humanity is going to bifurcate in two directions: Either it’s going to become multiplanetary, or it’s going to remain confined to one planet, and eventually, there’s going to be an extinction event.” Musk then reposted that post (archived), adding, “Those are the two paths.” Other social media users also previously shared the quote.
It’s true that Musk said these words. He delivered the remarks on May 29, 2013, during All Thing D’s D11 conference at Terranea Resort in Rancho Palos Verdes, California. Technology journalists Walt Mossberg and Kara Swisher moderated the discussion.
Musk’s exact quote was, “If you think about the future of humanity, it’s going to fundamentally bifurcate in two directions, all life as we know it. Either it’s going to become multiplanetary, or it’s going to be confined to one planet, until some eventual extinction event.” Moments later, he noted his words did not mean he believed the human race was “in danger of imminent demise.”
Snopes transcribed the relevant portion of Musk’s remark:
WALT MOSSBERG: You said a few minutes ago that there were three things that you were, you know, interested in. One was the internet, one was the electric car and the other was space. So, why, what got you into space?
MUSK: Right, so, if you think about the future of humanity, it’s going to fundamentally bifurcate in two directions, all life as we know it. Either it’s going to become multi-planetary, or it’s going to be confined to one planet, until some eventual extinction event. So, I think it’s much more …
KARA SWISHER: Well, if you put it that way, let’s go to Mars.
[audible laughing]
MUSK: And by the way, I’m optimistic about life on Earth. It’s not as though I’m like, I think we’re in danger of imminent demise.
MOSSBERG: But you’re convinced there will be an extinction event?
MUSK: Well, I mean that’s pretty obvious from the fossil records.
[…]
MUSK: I just think, you know, we want to have a future, ultimately, where humanity is out there exploring the stars, we’re a space-faring civilization. And the things we read about in science fiction books and see in movies becomes true. We don’t want that always to be a fiction of the future. So, if we don’t improve space technology every year, we’re never gonna get there. And so, the goal with SpaceX is to make as much improvement as possible and hopefully we’ll see people land on Mars in our lifetime. That would be really great.
Readers can watch Musk’s D11 interview in full on YouTube, with the relevant portion transcribed above beginning at the 31:35 mark.
Sources:
“About D11.” All Things D via Internet Archive, 2013, https://web.archive.org/web/20130605092217/https://allthingsd.com/conferences/d/d11/about/.
Arevalo, Evelyn. “Elon Musk Is ‘Accumulating Resources to Help Make Life Multiplanetary.'” TESMANIAN, 21 Mar. 2021, https://www.tesmanian.com/blogs/tesmanian-blog/elon.
Investary0. “D11 Conference: Elon Musk Full Interview.” YouTube, 30 May 2013, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UiPO4BUfov8.
Tweney, Dylan. “What’s next from Elon Musk? Warp Drives, and Colonizing Mars.” VentureBeat, 30 May 2013, https://venturebeat.com/entrepreneur/elon-musk-dreams-big/.
Yeung, Ken. “Apple CEO Tim Cook To Appear At All Things D’s D11 Conference.” TNW | Apple, 1 May 2013, https://thenextweb.com/news/apple-chief-tim-cook-to-appear-at-all-things-ds-d11-conference.
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