Elon Musk, the CEO of SpaceX, told an audience in Italy on Saturday that humans are probably the only species “in this part of the galaxy” with consciousness, equating our species to “a tiny candle in a vast darkness.”
Speaking at a gathering hosted by Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni, Elon Musk cited Italian scientist Enrico Fermi to justify his goal of settling people on Mars. Fermi’s “Fermi Paradox” raises the question of why, given the likelihood of alien life, humans have not yet found proof of it.
According to Musk, “one explanation—possibly the most plausible one—is that consciousness is incredibly uncommon.”
“I get asked all the time if I know anything about aliens or anything like that,” he said. The absurd part is that I haven’t seen any proof at all of alien presence. We are most likely the sole conscious species in the universe, at least in this region of the galaxy.
“Therefore, you can really imagine human consciousness as a tiny candle in a vast darkness, and we have to make every effort to keep the candle burning,” he said in closing.
Musk has maintained time and time again that the only ways mankind can survive are if the low birth rates in the West are turned around and if people are able to establish a “spacefaring civilization.” The billionaire celebrated last month’s explosion-filled second test launch of SpaceX’s Starship rocket as a significant advancement towards the goal of “all life multiplanetary.”
In 2012, SpaceX started working on the Starship rocket with the specific goal of sending humans and supplies to the red planet. During the rocket’s initial development, SpaceX called it the “Mars Colonial Transporter.”
When questioned his thoughts on aliens, Musk has frequently stated that there is insufficient evidence of extraterrestrial life, even though he has jokingly referred to aliens as his “friends.” In an October lecture at the 74th International Astronautical Congress, he lamented, “Unfortunately, I have not seen any evidence of aliens yet,” adding, “We are the aliens.”
