Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates says the rapid development of artificial intelligence and what he sees as inadequate safeguards pushed him to publicly warn about the technology’s risks.
“The silence is what really drove me to speak out at this point,” Gates told CNN’s Anderson Cooper.
Gates said the public needs a greater voice in decisions about AI, which he believes could bring major benefits while also creating serious risks.
He highlighted concerns including cyberattacks, fraud, disinformation, deepfakes, bioterrorism and the broader social impact of increasingly powerful AI systems.
Gates also argued that simply restricting data centers would not stop AI’s development because companies could build infrastructure elsewhere.
Gates warns of major job disruption
In a recent essay, Gates described the coming period as a “turbulent” AI era and argued that governments have not adequately prepared for the disruption ahead.
He warned that AI could replace jobs across industries including law, customer service, medicine, software and manufacturing, potentially hitting younger and entry-level workers particularly hard.
“I’m staking my reputation completely on the fact that in terms of the impact on the job market, this is very different than any technology that I’ve been involved in,” Gates said.
He has proposed measures including taxing AI or robots that replace workers and using the revenue for retraining and stronger social safety nets. He has also suggested reserving certain jobs for humans.
Gates says AI is both an opportunity and a threat
Gates has stopped short of calling for an outright halt to AI development. Instead, he has urged governments to establish stronger safeguards and oversight.
He acknowledged that reaching a global agreement to slow AI development could be difficult because of competition between nations and technology companies.
Despite his concerns, Gates continues to emphasize AI’s potential to improve healthcare, scientific research and productivity.
“I still think it’s within our grasp to shape this in a net positive way,” Gates said, comparing AI’s potential impact with nuclear technology.
