In a 2024 presentation called “We, Robot,” Elon Musk unveiled multiple new “futuristic” products, such as the Robovan: a cross between a train locomotive and an overpriced toaster. As usual, Musk’s commentary was shallow and unprofessional, with highly informative statements like: “We’re going to make this, and it’s going to look like that.” But, towards the tail end of this presentation, he made a statement that’s worth unpacking: “The future should look like the future.”

Now, on the surface, this declaration exposes a worryingly childish view of the future—one that appears to be informed entirely by style rather than substance. It appears that Musk’s desired style for “The Future” looks like it came straight out of Blade Runner. The robovan and, more famously, the Cybertruck, are the result of this weird futurism that seems more inspired by nostalgia of ‘80s science fiction than the practical reality of manufacturing.

But let’s go deeper. It’s easy to make fun of Elon Musk—the list of stunts is interminable. But notice how he didn’t say “this is our vision for the future,” or something equally fitting for a cheesy tech reveal. He said, “The future should look like the future.” As if the future is some sort of rigid destiny that we’re currently failing to fulfill. And this view is common in Silicon Valley. You hear it everywhere, especially when tech workers discuss a product that they sell. We’re primed to think that new tech will inevitably be adopted—whether it’s an app that replaces a switch, a new form of gambling on the go or an AI assistant for mundane tasks.

But rarely, if ever, does this narrative turn to doubt. What if this new solution doesn’t quite work for the problem it’s trying to solve? What if people start thinking their life was better before they adopted a new app? The reality is that the people who actually live with new products and infrastructure are the ones who decide what the future will look like. But to acknowledge this is to accept a lesser role in their own personal grand quests: saving the world with technology. And so they say, “I’m not out of touch, it’s the kids who are wrong!” It couldn’t possibly be that the Cybertruck is a bad product—consumers just don’t want to see the future.

Another great example of this is cryptocurrency. Crypto bros pumped up the idea of the blockchain as the inevitable future of finance. And yet, no amount of firm declarations of righteousness can change the fact that cryptocurrency’s low-trust environment makes it uniquely good for scams and uniquely bad at, well, being a real currency.

But more broadly, trying to predict what the future will look like is a fool’s errand. As a historical example, the future of energy was quite obvious to physicists in the nuclear age—once fossil fuels grow increasingly scarce, the world will inevitably shift to nuclear power plants. But with the benefit of hindsight, we’ve seen that nuclear power has instead stagnated. Why? Because other renewable sources have simply become cheaper and easier. In 2025, renewable energy (mostly solar, battery and wind) accounted for 88% of all new energy construction. Does a future where we get all our energy from wind and solar look like the future Elon refers to? Well, it really depends on what kind of future you envision, doesn’t it?

The future is certainly shaped by economic and material conditions. This is why we don’t pay dozens of masons to create buildings entirely out of bricks and, instead, prefabricate massive sheets of flat glass for curtain walls. And it’s also why AI is probably not going to go away—beyond all the frivolous uses that make our lives worse and waste energy, there are plenty of ways to save time and effort by delegating tedious tasks to AI. But we still have our voices. As AI art has become ubiquitous, it has also become cheap and boring. When we demand high-quality, human-made products, people listen. When we tell stories about a future where burning fossil fuels is an outdated, even stupid practice, people listen. When we celebrate true technological milestones, such as the FDA approval of weight-loss drugs, which have contributed to the first decline in American obesity since it started being measured, people listen.

Those who sit on top of a mountain of ill-gotten power—whether it’s venture capital, company shares or the U.S. federal government—are terrified of this cultural power. One of the most common features of college commencement speeches is that fresh graduates will have immense power over the future, both in their ability to work in critical industries and their role as young urban professionals. This is one of many reasons why the Trump administration has targeted higher education. Use this power responsibly so that we don’t have to ride around in Elon Musk’s toaster taxi in twenty years.