Amazon founder Jeff Bezos has said he believes humans in the future will live in “giant space colonies” and says the solar system could support a trillion people.
The billionaire said we could build an “incredible and dynamic” civilisation with “1,000 Mozarts and 1,000 Einsteins” by expanding into space.
During his speech to The Wings Club, an aviation group, he said he “wants to go to space to protect this planet” and that his space programme, Blue Origin, was his most important work.
Mr Bezos, who is the world’s richest man, has reportedly spent $500 million in his bid to win the race for launching commercial space travel.
Elon Musk’s SpaceX and Richard Branson’s Virgin Galactic are also hoping to launch flights.
Mr Bezos told New York’s Yale Club: “The solar system can support a trillion humans, and then we'd have 1,000 Mozarts, and 1,000 Einsteins. Think how incredible and dynamic that civilization will be.
“But if we're going to have that, we do have to go out into the solar system. You have to capture more of the sun's output, and we have to use all of the resources that are out in space, in terms of minerals and not just energy. And that's very doable, but we have to get started.”
Mr Bezos emphasised that “we don’t have forever” and said he believes our “grandchildren’s grandchildren” could live in space.
He made a dig at his Tesla rival’s attempts to colonise Mars, adding: “We have sent robotic probes now to every planet in this solar system, and this is the best one.
“My friends who want to move to Mars? I say, "Do me a favour, go live on the top of Mount Everest for a year first, and see if you like it — because it's a garden paradise compared to Mars."”
