Gates Foundation commits $1 billion to improving global AI access

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Set us as preferred 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 — whi...