Bill Gates thinks AI could make us live like the Amish

Why it matters

Bill Gates, cofounder and former CEO of Microsoft and chairman of the Gates Foundation, used a Decoder interview to argue that society is unprepared for a long stretch of AI-driven upheaval. He said the overall response has not matched the pace of the challenge, and warned that near-term dangers come chiefly from models whose safeguards can be stripped away, distinguishing them from monitored systems designed to keep cyberattackers and bioterrorists from exploiting powerful capabilities. Gates has spent recent months amplifying this message, publishing an essay calling the current period turbulent and describing AI in stark terms, including as the most dangerous thing humans have approached. In this conversation he framed the disruption as potentially splitting society between those who embrace the technological frontier and those who reject it. He also addressed labor impacts, younger generations' skepticism about progress, and alignment questions, including how controls could apply to both open-source and proprietary models. The interview shows a longtime technology optimist pressing for urgent, coordinated action.