Topline
Billionaire Bill Gates urged world leaders to act to ensure that artificial intelligence does not worsen global inequality, as his Gates Foundation published its annual Goalkeepers Report on Tuesday and pledged $1 billion to expand access to AI technologies, amid broader warnings from tech leaders about AI safety.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates warned that if left to the market AI could worsen inequality.
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Key Facts
In a statement accompanying the report, which tracks the progress of the United Nations’ Sustainable Development Goals, Gates wrote that AI could be a “great equalizer—or widen the gap.”
The Microsoft co-founder said he has lived through the “personal computing revolution,” but “nothing has felt like” the current moment with AI, which he said is “moving faster, reaching more people than anything before it.”
Gates warned that if things are left to the market, “AI will be designed by and for the richest people in the world.”
The billionaire argued that the decisions on AI made in “the next 12 to 18 months” will determine if the technology “benefits the people who already have the most or reaches those who have the least.”
Gates added that AI can be harnessed for good but noted it “won’t happen by accident.”
What Do We Know About The Foundation’s Pledge?
The Gates Foundation said it intends to spend at least $1 billion over the next two years to “expand access to artificial intelligence and AI-enabled solutions.” A statement said 40% of the funds would support education, “including AI tutoring,” and 40% would support healthcare uses like diagnostics, clinical decision-making, and the development of new drugs and vaccines. Agriculture would receive 10% of the funding to help small farmers with AI, and the remaining 10% would fund building a “digital foundation that equitable AI depends on.”
What Else Does the Report Say About AI?
The report outlined three key proposals for immediate action to ensure AI’s impact is positive. The first calls for making AI tools accessible in “every language people speak,” while noting that more than 90% of the data used to train early models came from English sources. The report also calls for allowing “countries and communities deciding how data is managed and protected,” and notes that “doctors, farmers, teachers, and developers” should be granted opportunities to evaluate these AI tools and adapt them to their needs.
What Has Gates Said About AI Risks?
Late last month, Gates penned a 6,000-word essay warning about the risks posed by AI. The essay got a brief mention in Tuesday’s statement, where the billionaire said “those risks are real and deserve serious attention.” In his essay, Gates wrote that the “transition to the AI era will be one of the most turbulent times in human history” and warned, “unfortunately, right now, we are not preparing for it.” Gates warned that AI could cause many jobs to disappear forever and added, “The jobs at most risk are entry- and mid-level.” The billionaire also warned that bad actors could use AI to do major harm, including fraud, disinformation, deepfakes, cyberattacks, and bioterrorism. The essay also echoed fears raised by major tech company leaders last week, noting “AI models could begin to act against our interests and we could lose control.” Gates also said the technology could stunt children’s development, as they turn to AI companions to replace human relationships.
further reading
Billionaire Anthropic CEO Urges Competitors To Slow Down AI Development (Forbes)
OpenAI Isn’t Going Public This Year, Sam Altman Says (Forbes)
Anthropic Researcher Warns There’s ‘>10% Chance’ AI Could ‘Kill All Humans’ By Next Decade (Forbes)
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