Gates Foundation commits $1 billion to improving global AI access

As debate rages over how to respond to the growing power of artificial intelligence, Bill Gates is throwing a billion dollars and some words of wisdom at the problem.

The Microsoft founder and one of the world’s biggest philanthropists warns that artificial intelligence could be either a “great equalizer” or a force that widens the world’s inequality gap.

On Monday, the Gates Foundation pledged $1 billion over the next two years toward expanding global AI access.

The foundation’s annual Goalkeepers Report, released Monday, outlined that the funding will support AI initiatives like training models on local languages, upgrading educational tools and improving healthcare and agriculture outcomes, with a focus on low-income communities.

“Things are changing rapidly, and the window to shape who benefits from AI, and how soon, is short,” the report said.

One billion people — mostly English speakers — are benefiting from improving AI systems, while another 7 billion are largely left behind, the report said. For example, AI speech recognition tools fail less than 6% of the time in English, but more than ten times as often in Yoruba, one of the most widely spoken languages in West Africa.

To bridge such gaps, Gates outlined three building blocks to try to maximize the benefits of AI.

Over 12 to 18 months, he explained, the technology should be built to work in every language and be grounded in local data, while investments should help communities understand how to best use AI for their needs.

Fears about AI’s existential risks were stoked last week after Anthropic researcher Jacob Coxon went viral with a resignation post warning there “will soon be superhuman systems that can hack anything, revolutionize any field overnight, and acquire real power and resources.”

Following Coxon’s post — which has been viewed more than 170 million times — Anthropic’s Chief Executive Dario Amodei called for a slowdown of AI development.

California lawmakers also have called for emergency legislation and criminal penalties for creators of rogue AI systems.

Gates echoed Amodei’s call for a slowdown.

“If we can slow down the growth of AI, we’ll have more time to ensure the benefits outweigh the harm, and leave everyone better off,” he wrote in a LinkedIn post Sunday.

Gates voiced concern about AI’s societal and economic effects last month.

“Even under the best circumstances, the transition to this new AI era will be one of the most turbulent times in human history,” he wrote on his personal website, adding that AI would hit industries like law, customer service, medicine, software and manufacturing.

“I don’t see evidence that leaders, experts, and communities are confronting the challenges adequately,” he said. “There is no plan to ease the entry into the AI era.”

Of the $1 billion in funds, 40% will be for education, 40% will support healthcare initiatives, 10% will support agriculture initiatives, and 10% will support digital initiatives such as expanding language data for AI tools.