Musk endorses ARK's warning: AI token usage up 25x in a year, capital is draining from traditional firms

新智元 · wechat · 2026-09-03

Elon Musk amplified ARK Invest futurist Brett Winton's thesis: "The AI riptide is already underway." Global AI inference token usage surged 25x in a year (OpenRouter tokens double every 11 weeks); Cathie Wood adds frontier AI labs' annualized revenue grew 5-10x within 6-12 months, and token growth could push real GDP growth into double digits.

Winton's core point is capital displacement: AI infrastructure payback periods are shrinking with extreme IRRs, Nvidia chips now serve as debt collateral, and capital flooding into AI is raising financing costs for traditional firms, crushing valuations and triggering talent flight—companies may die from "capital asphyxiation" rather than losing to AI directly. Musk replied "You are right," reaffirming his near-term AGI and singularity outlook.

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