On January 1st, 2020, Japanese billionaire Yusaku Maezawa asked Twitter that very question as he pledged to send 1,000 people a basic income with no strings attached.
Participants in the first wave of this experiment have been receiving an income of one million yen (equivalent to $9,300 USD). In tandem with supplying cash payments, Maezawa is conducting studies to determine the effects the experiment is having on society.
How Basic Income Affects Recipients in Japan
The first study shows some promising results:
- a near 4 times increase in new businesses being created
- a near 3 times decrease in divorce rates
- an over 3 times increased interest in getting married
- a 2.3 times increase in interest in studying abroad
- 70% of participants claim to be happier
Critics may dismiss this basic income experiment as the lark of a frivolous eccentric billionaire. Maezawa is after-all not an economist. He didn’t even go to college. He spends astronomical sums on art. Like the time in 2018 when he dropped $110 million on this single painting by Jean-Michel Basquiat:
Maezawa is adamant that his work is a “serious social experiment” – as reported by Vox in January. He plans to continue pushing the project forward.
From the Maezawa basic income project website:
“People can be happier if they received Basic Income. If people were given money needed for an adequate living, wouldn’t they have the freedom to enjoy work, therefore, increase people’s labor productivity?
The 1-million-yen is a depiction of chance. A chance to challenge themselves. Wouldn’t this turn peoples’ lives for the better? Of course, this is just an idea of mine, but why think when you can act?
And, I hope this social experiment will guide us to a better future.” – Yusaku Maezawa
Cure for a Lagging Economy?
For Japan, a country plagued by a stagnant economy and extremely low wage growth for over 25 years, a universal basic income (UBI) may be just what the doctor ordered.
To find out more, read more about this basic income project and see the full results of the study.
Is UBI good for society? Would it improve your life? Let us know in the comments below or on Twitter.
