Tokyo - Japanese fashion tycoon Yusaku
Maezawa is giving away $9 million to his Twitter followers in
what he says is a "social experiment" to see if the payment
boosts their happiness.
Maezawa will give 1 million yen ($9,000) to 1,000 followers
selected at random from those who retweeted a Jan. 1 post, with
the impact of the money to be tracked through regular surveys.
"It's a serious social experiment," said Maezawa on YouTube,
adding he hopes to attract interest from academics and
economists.
Maezawa, who is to be the first private passenger to fly
around the moon with Elon Musk's SpaceX, is known for his high
spending on art and sports cars but also has a predilection for
musing on ideas like a world without money.
He tied the giveaway to the idea of basic income, or the
theory of providing a periodic no-strings-attached payment to
all citizens, that has gained traction in some political circles
and is backed by Democratic U.S. presidential candidate Andrew
Yang.
"Basic means a regular minimum amount offering a sense of
security, what Maezawa is offering is totally different," said
Toshihiro Nagahama, senior economist at Dai-ichi Life Research
Institute.
Maezawa said that given that he "has the money and free
time" to make the payments, he felt the need to try and inspire
greater debate over the merits of the theory in Japan.
The idea of a universal basic income has gained support over
fears technology such as artificial intelligence will wipe out
large numbers of jobs but that concern is for now less
pronounced in Japan with its tight labour market, said Nagahama.
Its the second, larger, giveaway by the entrepreneur, who in
November secured a $900 million payday through the sale of his
online fashion business Zozo Inc to SoftBank Group Corp
.
Maezawa, who recently grabbed headlines after his split from
actress girlfriend Ayame Goriki, has gathered almost 7 million
followers on Twitter with his mix of displays of conspicuous
consumption and folksy pronouncements on the meaning of life.
YouTube is the latest online outlet for the businessman,
with videos including a tour of his private jet, a visit to the
barber to dye his hair and updating his bank book after
November's windfall.
The debate over basic income comes as income inequality
continues to grow in the United States, where in recent years
some of its wealthiest entrepreneurs, from Microsoft
co-founder Bill Gates to investor Warren Buffet, have pledged to
give away most of their wealth.
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