The Gates Foundation has pledged at least $1 billion over the next two years to expand global access to artificial intelligence and address social inequalities. Announced alongside its annual Goalkeepers report, the funding aims to ensure A. I. "helps narrow gaps between the richest and poorest rather than widening them." Investments will support A.

I. projects in health care, agriculture, and education, and develop data sets in more languages. The report warns that early large language models relied heavily on English data, leaving many communities poorly represented. Bill Gates, the billionaire co-founder of Microsoft and chairman of the Gates Foundation, has warned that A. I. poses a grave threat to jobs and human life, calling the transition potentially one of the "most turbulent times in human history." He argues the tech industry is downplaying risks due to financial incentives.

The pledge follows calls from Sam Altman of Open AI, Elon Musk of Space XAI, and Demis Hassabis of Google Deep Mind for a slower A. I. development pace. Mr. Gates urged governments and companies to focus on helping those with the most to gain, stating, "We can harness A. I. for good.

But it won't happen by accident.".