Bill Gates warns: AI will cause a billion deaths
Bill Gates warns in an interview with NBC that artificial intelligence could lead to a billion deaths if immediate government oversight is not imposed. Gates calls for urgent legislation in Congress and warns against malicious use of the technology to produce biological weapons and cyber attacks. President Trump rejects calls to slow development.
Bill Gates, founder of Microsoft, warned in an interview with NBC's "Meet the Press" that artificial intelligence could lead to the deaths of a billion people if strict and immediate government oversight is not imposed. Gates refrained from determining whether the technology would bring about the destruction of all humanity, but emphasized that it is powerful enough to cause unprecedented deadly events. According to him, the source of danger is not a fictional scenario of computers developing consciousness, but malicious use that turns AI into the most powerful weapon ever created. Advanced models lower the technological threshold for rogue states, terrorist organizations, and criminal entities, enabling them to design pathogens and biological weapons, develop cyber attacks on critical infrastructure, and collapse global supply chains. Gates called for swift legislation in the US Congress and criticized the nationalist "us versus them" mindset as absolute irresponsibility. His remarks place him alongside other industry leaders, but in contrast to President Donald Trump's policy, which rejects calls to slow development. The article cites reactions from the political and economic arena, including support from Amy Cramer and opposition from Nancy Tengler, as well as comments from economist Julia Cartwright calling for clear regulation.