Bill Gates: International governments are 'way behind' on AI, must work together to avoid issues

Gates said he has been talking to world leaders about his concerns, including President Donald Trump and his team in the US, and said he aims to meet China’s President Xi Jinping later this year.

No government in the world is ready for the changes artificial intelligence will bring to society, Bill Gates said in an interview with Reuters, as he warned of the risks ahead.

The Microsoft co-founder and billionaire philanthropist had until recently been optimistic about AI, but has changed his position, warning of the threats to jobs, concerns about attacks and the dangers of addiction to AI companions.

“I don't think any government is nearly as deep on this as they have to be,” he said. However, he added that the technology has great potential to help the world's poorest if managed properly and accessed equally - and his namesake foundation said on Tuesday that it plans to spend at least $1 billion in the next two years on expanding access to AI.

Gates said he has been talking to world leaders about his concerns, including President Donald Trump and his team in the US, and said he aims to meet China’s President Xi Jinping later this year.

“Governments are way behind on this one,” he added.

Health research and discovery potential

But despite his concerns, Gates and his foundation hope AI can help narrow gaps between the richest and poorest, rather than widening them.

The foundation's $1 billion spending plan, part of its previously announced plans to spend $9 billion annually, will go to partners working in education, healthcare and agriculture, the foundation said. It also aims to help build the data foundations AI is built on, such as ensuring that large language models work in every language people speak.

“For health it’s hard to overstate what the potential is,” Gates said, from supporting frontline health care workers to discovering new drugs and vaccines.

But he said governments must work together to avoid problems, likening the arrival of AI to a disaster movie.

“There’s all sorts of movies where some aliens are coming, and magically the US and China and everybody comes together to solve the problem,” he said. “AI is kind of like this alien intelligence. It’s here, and we better do like it shows in those movies.”

Reputational hit?

In June, Gates appeared in front of Congress to testify about his relationship with the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. Gates, who is not accused of any crimes, has repeatedly said he regrets his association with Epstein, who he hoped would donate to global health causes. Instead, the financier attempted to blackmail Gates over his extramarital affairs.

However, despite prompting an external review at his foundation, which found no payments to Epstein or participation in criminal activities, Gates said the links had not caused him or the foundation a significant reputational hit.

“In terms of having access to government leaders, or you know, journalists being willing to interview me, I don't see any diminishment,” he said, adding that the desire to draw on the foundation’s expertise to cut child deaths and end malaria had also not reduced “even one iota”.