People will be on Mars within 10 years
Predictor: Elon Musk · ep#239 "Elon Musk: The Economy Will Be 10x the Size in 10 Years | #239" · source
Prediction text
People will be on Mars within 10 years | And we'll have people on Mars.
Verbatim quote
And we'll have people on Mars.
Predictor: Elon Musk
Calibration plot (stated vs observed)
Evidence about this node from Elon Musk is multiplied by κ in /api/intake. Lower κ = less weight; floors at 0.10 (effectively silenced) and caps at 1.00 (full weight).
Reference class: mars_uncrewed_landing_window
Successful uncrewed payload delivery to Mars surface within named transfer window
Tetlock-style outside view: at TRF=1 (just predicted), outside view dominates (w_in=0.3). At TRF=0 (deadline), inside view dominates (w_in=1.0). The blend regularizes overconfident inside views toward the historical base rate.
Probability over time
Milestone chain
- 2026-06-01 → 2028-12-31pendingSuccessful orbital propellant transfer (cryogenic refueling) demonstrated at scaleHow: SpaceX completes ship-to-ship cryogenic methane/LOX transfer in LEO with verified mass and handoff time, reported via FCC/FAA filingsSource: Musk: refueling is gating tech for crewed Mars missionconf 60%
- 2027-09-01 → 2028-06-30pendingFirst uncrewed Starship landing on Mars during 2026/27 transfer windowHow: SpaceX confirms (and independent tracking — JPL DSN, NASA — verifies) successful soft-landing of Starship vehicle on Martian surface during 2026/27 launch windowSource: Musk May 2025 Mars presentation — 50% odds 2026/27 windowconf 35%
- 2028-10-01 → 2029-12-31pending20+ Starship Mars missions launched in 2028/29 transfer windowHow: Aggregate FAA/Cape/Boca Chica launch logs confirm >=20 Starship vehicles on Mars trajectory during 2028/29 windowSource: Musk 2025 schedule: ~20 launches in 2028/29 windowconf 30%
- 2029-09-01 → 2031-12-31pendingFirst Starship crewed Mars mission departs Earth (Musk-stated 2029-31 window)How: FAA-licensed crewed Starship launch with humans aboard targeting Mars; on-track trajectory confirmed by JPL DSN trackingSource: Musk: 'human landings as soon as 2029, 2031 more likely'conf 18%
- 2030-06-01 → 2034-12-31pendingFirst humans land alive on Martian surfaceHow: SpaceX or independent verification (NASA, ESA tracking) confirms humans alive and operating on Mars surface for >=24 hoursSource: Direct event anchor for prediction (Diamandis 'within 10 years')conf 15%
- 2035-06-01 → 2045-12-31pendingSelf-sustaining colony milestone — >=100 humans continuously on MarsHow: SpaceX confirms continuous Martian human presence >=100 individuals for >=12 consecutive months (cascade beyond Diamandis 10-year claim)Source: Musk self-sustaining colony 2050 thesisconf 10%
What if this resolves?
Click a button to clamp this prediction and run a Gibbs sample. Returns the predictions whose marginals shift most. ~30s per run; ideal for stress-testing "if X resolves, what else moves?"
Evidence chain
Network propagation neighbors
Top incoming (parents)
Edges that influence THIS node's belief
| Kind | Node | Their prob | P(c|s=T) | P(c|s=F) | Δ implied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| killer | TK03 AI Regulatory Moratorium (EU/US Capability Freeze) | 10.0% | 0.050 | 0.550 | +0.191 |
| killer | TK15 SpaceX Starship Catastrophic Failure | 12.0% | 0.050 | 0.550 | +0.181 |
| killer | TK01 AGI Capability Plateau (2026-27 Training Stall) | 15.0% | 0.050 | 0.550 | +0.166 |
| prereq | 238_009 Recursive self-improvement is already happening now (no long — Alex Wissner-Gross | 78.1% | 0.550 | 0.050 | +0.127 |
| prereq | 230_022 Elon plans to produce tens of millions of robots per year in — Elon Musk | 30.7% | 0.550 | 0.050 | -0.109 |
Top outgoing (children)
Predictions THIS node influences
| Kind | Node | Their prob | P(c|s=T) | P(c|s=F) | Δ implied |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| prereq | 232_047 Mass drivers on the moon will shoot AI satellites into deep — Elon Musk | 30.0% | 0.550 | 0.050 | -0.100 |
Ticker exposure
Beneficiaries (19)
Adverse (7)
Prerequisites (48)
| Type | Pred | Title | Domain | Lag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| prereq | 235_038 | David Sinclair begins partial epigenetic reprogramming trials with Life Biosciences in March 2026. | Biotech/Longevity | — |
| prereq | 248_040 | Pausing AI will fail and only accelerate race dynamics. | AI | — |
| prereq | 232_014 | Recursive self-improvement is already here, not 12 months away. | AI | — |
| prereq | 238_009 | Recursive self-improvement is already happening now (no longer three years out) | AI | — |
| prereq | 235_030 | Ray Kurzweil predicts Longevity Escape Velocity (LEV) by 2033. | Biotech/Longevity | — |
| prereq | CMQ_001 | By 2026, AI will reach 'intern-level' capability — millions of virtual interns performing supervised, economically useful tasks. | AI | — |
| prereq | 241_043 | ASI will arrive within 2 years to 5 years to this next decade | AI | — |
| prereq | 246_016 | Dragonfly nuclear-powered octicopter arrives at Titan in 2034. | Space | — |
| prereq | 244_026 | Uber platform will grow from 10M to 20M people by 2035 | Labor/Jobs | — |
| prereq | 231_033 | Data centers in space will take 5-7 years at best, not 2-3. | Space | — |
| prereq | 242_001 | Elon's Terafab will build 1 terawatt of AI compute per year, 50x current global production | AI | — |
| prereq | 240_035 | Meta secured 6.6 GW of clean nuclear power for 2035 | Energy | — |
| prereq | 234_024 | Financial systems between AI and blockchain will become self-auditing on a real-time basis | Labor/Jobs | — |
| prereq | 239_016 | Tesla will not do layoffs and will increase headcount | Labor/Jobs | — |
| prereq | 232_025 | Massive concurrent prosperity and social unrest ahead as AI wealth concentrates. | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 238_052 | $100 trillion companies within 5 years (3 years from now, per Diamandis interpretation of Musk) | Markets/Stocks | — |
| prereq | 244_027 | Uber platform workers in 2035 may be doing different kinds of tasks | Labor/Jobs | — |
| prereq | 239_018 | Universal High Income will be implemented | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 239_015 | Tesla output per employee will become very very high | Labor/Jobs | — |
| prereq | 239_019 | Deflation will occur as goods/services output exceeds money supply growth | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 239_023 | AI and robotics are the only way to solve US budget deficit and avoid bankruptcy | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | CMQ_002 | By 2028, AI systems will reach 'independent researcher' level — driving autonomous scientific discoveries without human intervention. | AI | — |
| prereq | 239_021 | Money will stop being relevant at some point | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 230_027 | We are in an intelligence revolution — a war on scarce human attention — weapon is the token. | AI | — |
| prereq | 230_038 | AI will be net super-humanizing long-term despite short-term substitution effects. | AI | — |
| prereq | 232_032 | Crypto will become pervasive utility for AI; a ledger of truth is also needed. | Crypto | — |
| prereq | 232_039 | 150,000 people per day dying on Earth; AI is the best chance to stop that. | Biotech/Longevity | — |
| prereq | 236_001 | Universal High Income and social unrest will both happen simultaneously | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 237_005 | Apple can flip being viewed as AI loser and win the AI consumer race by leveraging Mac devices for local AI. | Markets/Stocks | — |
| prereq | 238_043 | A mouse will have a full brain uploaded in years, not decades; first human whole-brain emulation also years away | Biotech/Longevity | — |
| prereq | 238_060 | Universal basic AI (UBI for AI/compute) will be required — money must come from being human, not banks | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 239_028 | Intelligence harnessing up to 1 millionth of sun's energy possible | Energy | — |
| prereq | 245_018 | Invasive species problem is currently measured at $5.4 trillion globally | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 245_019 | US spends over $500B per year on invasive species economic impact | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 248_034 | Capital chasing AI stories is outpacing operating reality; narrative leverage warning. | Markets/Stocks | — |
| prereq | 248_047 | Memory companies' stock prices will continue increasing despite algorithmic efficiency gains. | Markets/Stocks | — |
| prereq | 232_048 | Earth will develop a visible halo/ring of AI satellites; could be visible at night and possibly day. | Space | — |
| prereq | 232_037 | Bootstrapping lunar/cis-lunar satellite manufacturing facilities within a few years will relieve launch bottleneck. | Space | — |
| prereq | 233_012 | AI will give kids superpowers and transform their childhood. | AI | — |
| prereq | 240_030 | Tesla's independent chip production would derisk potential Chinese invasion of Taiwan | Geopolitics | — |
| prereq | 232_059 | Universal basic equity / sovereign dividends will eventually put everyone on capital side of ledger. | Macro/Economy | — |
| prereq | 230_022 | Elon plans to produce tens of millions of robots per year in just a few years. | Robotics | — |
| correlate | S_MARS_2028 | Mars uncrewed: 2028 transfer window (most likely first attempt) | mars_uncrewed_landing | — |
| correlate | S_MARS_2026 | Mars uncrewed: 2026 transfer window | mars_uncrewed_landing | — |
| correlate | S_MARS_2031PLUS | Mars uncrewed: 2031+ transfer window or further delay | mars_uncrewed_landing | — |
| killer | TK01 | AGI Capability Plateau (2026-27 Training Stall) | — | — |
| killer | TK15 | SpaceX Starship Catastrophic Failure | — | — |
| killer | TK03 | AI Regulatory Moratorium (EU/US Capability Freeze) | — | — |
Dependents (1)
| Type | Pred | Title | Domain | Lag |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| prereq | 232_047 | Mass drivers on the moon will shoot AI satellites into deep space; self-sustaining lunar city will follow. | Space | — |
Raw metadata
{
"nia": false,
"url": "https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N5KCm_55xeQ",
"mode": "PREDICTION",
"role": "Guest-CEO",
"context": "And we'll have people on Mars.",
"to_year": 2036,
"verbatim": "And we'll have people on Mars.",
"conv_cues": "we'll have",
"direction": "HAPPEN",
"from_year": 2036,
"timeframe": "by 2036",
"conv_level": "HIGH",
"milestones": [
{
"kind": "scenario_signal",
"label": "Scenario fires: Mars uncrewed: 2026 transfer window",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.7,
"ordinal": -13,
"source_id": "S_MARS_2026",
"expected_date": "2026-11-30",
"observed_date": null
},
{
"kind": "llm_pre_event",
"label": "Successful orbital propellant transfer (cryogenic refueling) demonstrated at scale",
"source": "Musk: refueling is gating tech for crewed Mars mission",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.4,
"ordinal": -12,
"source_id": null,
"confidence": 0.6,
"source_url": "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Mars_colonization_program",
"expected_date": "2027-09-16",
"research_origin": "training",
"expected_date_range": {
"to": "2028-12-31",
"from": "2026-06-01"
},
"measurement_criterion": "SpaceX completes ship-to-ship cryogenic methane/LOX transfer in LEO with verified mass and handoff time, reported via FCC/FAA filings"
},
{
"kind": "llm_pre_event",
"label": "First uncrewed Starship landing on Mars during 2026/27 transfer window",
"source": "Musk May 2025 Mars presentation — 50% odds 2026/27 window",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.4,
"ordinal": -11,
"source_id": null,
"confidence": 0.35,
"source_url": "https://aerospaceamerica.aiaa.org/aiaa-spacex/",
"expected_date": "2028-01-30",
"research_origin": "training",
"expected_date_range": {
"to": "2028-06-30",
"from": "2027-09-01"
},
"measurement_criterion": "SpaceX confirms (and independent tracking — JPL DSN, NASA — verifies) successful soft-landing of Starship vehicle on Martian surface during 2026/27 launch window"
},
{
"kind": "prereq",
"label": "Massive concurrent prosperity and social unrest ahead as AI wealth concentrates.",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.5,
"ordinal": -10,
"source_id": "232_025",
"expected_date": "2028-06-19",
"observed_date": null
},
{
"kind": "prereq",
"label": "Crypto will become pervasive utility for AI; a ledger of truth is also needed.",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.5,
"ordinal": -9,
"source_id": "232_032",
"expected_date": "2028-06-21",
"observed_date": null
},
{
"kind": "llm_pre_event",
"label": "20+ Starship Mars missions launched in 2028/29 transfer window",
"source": "Musk 2025 schedule: ~20 launches in 2028/29 window",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.4,
"ordinal": -8,
"source_id": null,
"confidence": 0.3,
"source_url": "https://spacexstock.com/mars-transfer-windows-investors-guide/",
"expected_date": "2029-05-17",
"research_origin": "training",
"expected_date_range": {
"to": "2029-12-31",
"from": "2028-10-01"
},
"measurement_criterion": "Aggregate FAA/Cape/Boca Chica launch logs confirm >=20 Starship vehicles on Mars trajectory during 2028/29 window"
},
{
"kind": "prereq",
"label": "Elon plans to produce tens of millions of robots per year in just a few years.",
"status": "pending",
"weight": 0.5,
"ordinal": -7,
"source_id": "230_022",
"expected_date": "2029-12-10",
"observed_date": null
},
{
"kind": "llm_pre_event",
"label": "First Starship crewed Mars mission departs Earth (Musk-stated 2029-31 window)",
"source": "Musk: 'human landings as soon as 2029, 203
... (truncated)