“It will create jobs…”: Bill Gates’ message on AI to IT professionals

In the first episode of Zerodha founder Nikhil Kamath’s new podcast series ‘People by WTF’, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates shared his insights on the future of artificial intelligence (AI) and its potential impact on various industries, particularly software engineering. While acknowledging the transformative power of AI, Gates reassured his listeners that it is unlikely to replace software engineers anytime soon.

“The amazing thing about this technology is that we know it can help in key areas and can create educational tutors. We have seen several projects in India and the United States that are yielding excellent results. The potential would be incredible if we knew that all it did was make jobs more productive,” Gates said, highlighting AI’s potential to revolutionize education and increase productivity.

Responding to concerns about AI potentially displacing software engineers, Gates called those fears “alarmist.” He emphasized, “We still need these software engineers, because we’re not going to stop needing them.” The assurance comes as a relief to many in the tech industry worried about job security amid rapid progress in AI.

However, Gates acknowledged the possibility of AI reaching a level where it could potentially replace all jobs, but he believes this scenario is unlikely over the next two decades. “Even though I’m not sure,” he added, suggesting that the long-term impact of AI remains uncertain.