Mark Cuban proposes AI robot tax to fund U.S. Social Security

Entrepreneur Mark Cuban has suggested a new funding mechanism for Social Security that would levy a flat fee on each hour an artificial‑intelligence system or robot performs work. The idea is that when a machine replaces a human worker, the payroll tax that normally funds Social Security disappears, creating a shortfall. Cuban argues that charging robots a per‑hour fee would direct revenue back to the program, shifting the debate from "tax the rich" to "tax the AI."

He notes that the Social Security trust fund is projected to be exhausted by 2032, with payroll taxes covering only about 78 % of scheduled benefits. The worker‑to‑beneficiary ratio has fallen from five workers per retiree in 1960 to roughly 2.9‑to‑1 today, underscoring the structural funding gap that his proposal aims to address.