Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is a big proponent of AI. Gates has been on a book tour to promote his latest memoir, Source Code: My Beginnings. His stops on podcasts and talk shows have been filled with him talking about his youth, the beginning of Microsoft, his philanthropy efforts regarding vaccines, and even the time he was tripping on acid.
He's also spoken at length about AI. It makes sense as Microsoft has a big stake in OpenAI. As a big fan of AI for many years, Gates has high hopes for the technology, especially when it comes to health.
Gates appeared on the Figuring Out with Raj Shamani podcast and spoke about how AI could make a big impact when it comes to mental health.
"Isn’t that one of the most exciting things because you know, we can never have enough therapists," Gates said. "Maybe we could help even people with mild symptoms, so, you know, what does this AI companion look like and how can that help us?"
Gates went on to say that AI will change how people do creative work and how educational material will be improved upon with the technology.
The more than 40-minute interview with Gates also touched on his philanthropy work. Gates stepped down from his role as Microsoft CEO in 2000 and then left the company's board in 2020 to focus more on his philanthropy. He said his Gates Foundation is seeing more success.
Gates also spent much of the appearance talking about India. Shamani, who is Indian, discussed with Gates about the country's progress in tech and science; however, the Microsoft co-founder says there is a lot of work that still needs to be done.
Bill Gates and AI
In a previous interview with Jimmy Fallon, Gates predicted that AI could replace doctors and teachers.
"The era that we're just starting is that intelligence is rare," Gates told Fallon back in February. "And with A.I., over the next decade that will become free. Great medical advice, great tutoring."
He went on to say that AI will change how people work. It could drive innovation and even improve work so much that only a two or three-day work week is needed.
Gates continued on about how humans won't be needed as much, which took Fallon aback. The Microsoft co-founder says it will be humans who decide what kind of role we'll have in the future.
“You know, like baseball. We won't want to watch computers play baseball,” Gates said. “So there'll be some things that we reserve for ourselves, but in terms of making things and moving things, and growing food, over time, those will be basically solved problems.”
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