Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates spoke with Zerodha founder Nikhil Kamath in the first episode of Kamath's podcast series “People by WTF” for 30 minutes about the impact of artificial intelligence (AI) on various industries, especially software engineering, since his early days at Microsoft. Gates said that while AI has the potential to revolutionize many fields, he doesn't think it will replace software engineers anytime soon.
“The great thing about this technology is we know it can help in important areas, we know it can create educational tutors. We've seen some projects in India and the US that are doing great things. Once you realize it's just about making people more productive at work, the potential is enormous,” Gates said, highlighting the positive impact AI can have on education and other important areas.
When asked about concerns that AI could take over software engineers' jobs, Gates dismissed such worries as “overblown.” He emphasized that “software engineers are still needed and will continue to be needed,” a remark that will come as a relief to those in the software engineering industry who fear losing their jobs to advances in AI technology.
But while Gates acknowledges it's possible we could reach a point where AI could potentially replace all jobs, he thinks this scenario is unlikely to happen within the next 20 years. “I'm not so sure about that,” he adds with a smile, suggesting that predicting AI's long-term impact is not an exact science.
Bill Gates and his relationship with India
Gates looked back fondly on his company's early relationship with India, saying, “We've had a great relationship with India, starting with my experience at Microsoft and recruiting some very talented IT graduates and bringing them to Seattle.”
Gates praised the Indian-born current CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, and noted that while India is “first-rate in many ways,” it faces challenges such as poverty and backlogs in the justice system. “Trust me, the laws that work in the U.S. don't work here. But just imagine, if we could quadruple the productivity of everyone in the justice system, that would change justice, because right now backlogs are a nightmare,” Gates said.
“The great thing about this technology is we know it can help in important areas, we know it can create educational tutors. We've seen some projects in India and the US that are doing great things. Once you realize it's just about making people more productive at work, the potential is enormous,” Gates said, highlighting the positive impact AI can have on education and other important areas.
When asked about concerns that AI could take over software engineers' jobs, Gates dismissed such worries as “overblown.” He emphasized that “software engineers are still needed and will continue to be needed,” a remark that will come as a relief to those in the software engineering industry who fear losing their jobs to advances in AI technology.
But while Gates acknowledges it's possible we could reach a point where AI could potentially replace all jobs, he thinks this scenario is unlikely to happen within the next 20 years. “I'm not so sure about that,” he adds with a smile, suggesting that predicting AI's long-term impact is not an exact science.
Bill Gates and his relationship with India
Gates looked back fondly on his company's early relationship with India, saying, “We've had a great relationship with India, starting with my experience at Microsoft and recruiting some very talented IT graduates and bringing them to Seattle.”
Gates praised the Indian-born current CEO of Microsoft, Satya Nadella, and noted that while India is “first-rate in many ways,” it faces challenges such as poverty and backlogs in the justice system. “Trust me, the laws that work in the U.S. don't work here. But just imagine, if we could quadruple the productivity of everyone in the justice system, that would change justice, because right now backlogs are a nightmare,” Gates said.
