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Tesla CEO Elon Musk has weighed in on the ongoing debate about foreign-born tech workers currently employed in the United States and their impact on the job market for Americans. His comments came in response to a query posed by Amjad Masad, the CEO of Replit, a platform for coding enthusiasts.
Masad expressed scepticism about claims that foreign workers are edging out qualified Americans in the tech sector. He wrote on X, “Genuinely curious: Are there actual instances where qualified native-born Americans couldn’t get jobs in tech because foreigners took all of them? I’d be surprised if it’s true because at any given point there are hundreds of thousands of unfilled jobs in tech.”
Musk, who is of South African origin, responded to Masad’s query, emphasising the ongoing scarcity of top-tier engineering professionals in the United States. He replied, “There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent. It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.”
There is a permanent shortage of excellent engineering talent. It is the fundamental limiting factor in Silicon Valley.
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 25, 2024
This conversation came amid heightened discussions about the role of foreign workers, particularly in light of President-elect Donald Trump’s appointment of Indian-American Sriram Krishnan as a senior policy advisor on artificial intelligence.
The move sparked mixed reactions on social media, with a few users saying that foreign workers, especially those on H-1B visas, are often hired at lower wages, potentially displacing American workers.
A few days ago, when a user said, “I’m against more low-end H1B immigrants, but let’s win at the talent game,” Elon Musk dismissed the idea of limited job opportunities, describing it as a “fixed pie” fallacy.
He said, “The “fixed pie” fallacy is at the heart of much wrong-headed economic thinking. There is essentially infinite potential for job and company creation. Think of all the things that didn’t exist 20 or 30 years ago!”
The “fixed pie” fallacy is at the heart of much wrong-headed economic thinking.
There is essentially infinite potential for job and company creation.
Think of all the things that didn’t exist 20 or 30 years ago! https://t.co/w7naC0Sb5E
— Elon Musk (@elonmusk) December 24, 2024
Immigration lawyers are advising foreign tech workers in the US on visas to return to the country before President-elect Donald Trump takes office next month. The warning comes ahead of Donald Trump’s January 20th inauguration and the expectation that he may introduce executive orders restricting access to various work visas, including those frequently used in the tech sector. The 78-year-old has also reportedly pledged to reinstate a ban on entry for individuals from Muslim-majority countries.
