Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates warned that unchecked artificial intelligence (AI) could cause a billion deaths if malicious actors exploit its growing capabilities. He urged the US government to introduce mandatory safeguards, strengthen monitoring, and bring tech companies under regulatory oversight.
In an interview with NBC's Meet the Press, aired on September 27, Gates told host Kristen Welker, “AI could drive catastrophic events if people with harmful intentions gain access to advanced tools.” He said voluntary industry commitments would not adequately address the risks.
Gates noted in the show, “Lawmakers and law enforcement agencies must participate directly in deciding how AI companies develop, deploy and monitor their systems. You need law enforcement and the politicians to get into the discussion about what safeguards and monitoring look like.”
He acknowledged that compliance would add operating costs for technology companies but argued that regulation need not significantly slow innovation. Gates further explained, “There’s never been a weapon as powerful as the combination of people with ill intent using the latest AI tools.” Thus, underlining the potential consequences of increasingly capable AI systems.
Gates also urged policymakers to look beyond the US-China technology race. He said governments, political parties, researchers and technology companies must work together to establish safeguards before AI capabilities advance further.
The warning follows an essay Gates published in August, in which he discussed AI's potential to deliver major advances while also creating risks on an unprecedented scale.
Malicious actors could potentially use advanced AI tools to strengthen cyberattacks, spread disinformation and target critical infrastructure. The risks also include the possible misuse of AI in developing biological weapons or supporting other activities capable of causing mass casualties. Gates' comments reflect concerns about the potential consequences of AI misuse, not a prediction of a billion deaths.
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