Bill Gates with a gloomy forecast: this is what could happen in the coming year

Bill Gates warns of a wave of AI-driven cyberattacks in the coming year, against the backdrop of an 89% jump in AI attacks in 2025 according to CrowdStrike. Gates called for smart regulation that balances innovation and security, and also addressed the danger of bioterror.

Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, published a gloomy forecast in an interview with CNN, in which he warned of a wave of AI-driven cyberattacks in the coming year. According to him, malicious actors are gaining access to powerful AI models without adequate defenses, which will lead to 'a lot of negative surprises' in the cyber realm. Gates noted that the motives will be economic – extortion, stock market disruption and betting manipulation. His warning is published against the backdrop of the CrowdStrike 2026 report, which reported an 89% jump in AI attacks in 2025, and noted that the average time to move laterally within breached networks plunged to 29 minutes. Gates also addressed the danger of bioterror, and emphasized that governments are not doing enough to prevent it. He called for smart regulation that balances innovation and security.