Bill Gates Warns of AI's Rapid Progress and Uncertain Timeline for Human Job Replacement

Bill Gates says AI is moving at a speed that "surprises" even him -- and he says the experts can't tell if it'll replace humans in one year or ten

Job seekers are scrambling to figure out when AI will come for their jobs -- but even the experts can't agree on a timeline. Now, Bill Gates is sounding the alarm: It could all happen so fast, workers won't even have time to catch up. "The question is, has it come so fast that you don't have time to adjust to it?" Bill Gates just said in an interview with CNN. The Microsoft cofounder noted that AI is already capable of taking over administrative roles like telesales, but it's still falling short when it comes to more complex tasks -- and even he's dumbfounded by just how quickly it's closing the gap. "It's improving at a rate that surprises me," the tech pioneer, worth $122 billion, said in the interview, while pointing to its deep research capability as an example. "A few times a day, I take some complex question, and just for fun, I see AI does an awfully good job gathering all the materials, and summarizing what I need to know." In just a few years, the technology has gone from writing emails to generating functional code. That's why no one can pin down when exactly the tipping point will come, Gates added. "AI today can replace human work, the most complex coding tasks, [but] it's not able to do [it] yet. And people in the field disagree: is that within the next year or two, or is it more like ten years away?" Fellow business leaders have been candid that AI will be just as capable as, or even more advanced than, most human workers in the next few years. Anthropic CEO Dario Amodei predicted that up to 50% of entry-level white collar jobs could be replaced by AI within 5 years. Amazon CEO Andy Jassy also told employees that within the next few years, AI would reduce some corporate roles, like customer service representatives and software developers. And over at Meta, its CEO Mark Zuckerberg is already getting started on automating some of his employees' jobs -- the tech billionaire announced that the company is building an "AI engineer" to help with coding tasks. That shift isn't unique to just tech roles. IBM cut around 8,000 jobs this May in HR and other departments, as the tools take over routine administrative tasks. Instead, the company is hiring more engineers and salespeople, signaling a transition to more roles that require creativity and complex decision-making. As more companies pull back on hiring and training early job seekers, they are also shrinking the talent pool of future leaders. The jobs that have historically served as stepping stones for entry-level workers are under threat. With recent college grads struggling to land entry-level jobs, Gates weighed in on growing fears that AI is taking opportunities from young workers. He argued that rising productivity should free people's time to do more of the other things they enjoy -- from side hustles to vacations. "When you improve productivity, you can make more [jobs]," Gates said. "It means you can free up these people to have smaller class sizes or have longer vacations or help to do more, so it's not a bad thing." New research echoes that already, 4 in 10 say it has provided better work-life balance, reduced stress, and improved decision-making.

Bill Gates Warns AI Progress 'Surprises' Even Him -- Unclear When It Will Replace Human Work - Microsoft (NASDAQ:MSFT), NVIDIA (NASDAQ:NVDA)

Microsoft Corp. MSFT co-founder Bill Gates warned that artificial intelligence is advancing at a pace that "surprises" even him, creating uncertainty about when AI might replace human workers across industries. What Happened: "It's improving at a rate that surprises me," Gates said. The tech pioneer highlighted AI's growing research capabilities, noting he regularly tests complex questions on AI systems that deliver comprehensive summaries. Gates emphasized the unpredictable nature of AI's trajectory. "AI today can replace human work, the most complex coding tasks, it's not able to do yet. And people in the field disagree: is that within the next year or two, or is it more like ten years away?" See Also: Marc Benioff Says AI Now Handles Up To 50% Of Work At Salesforce -- Could An AI Agent Eventually Take Over His Job? The technology has rapidly evolved from basic email composition to generating functional code. Gates noted AI already handles administrative roles like telesales but struggles with more complex tasks, though that gap is narrowing quickly. Why It Matters: Other tech industry leaders have also shared their views on the subject earlier. Nvidia Corp. NVDA CEO Jensen Huang takes a more direct stance, warning that workers who don't embrace AI risk obsolescence. However, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella thinks AI will redefine cognitive labor, but it won't do so by making human workers irrelevant. Goldman Sachs estimates AI could impact 300 million full-time jobs globally, but industry analysis suggests mass redefinition rather than replacement. Read Next: AI Will Disrupt 25% Of US Jobs By 2030 -- And The Fed Can't Save Them, Economist Warns Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors. Photo courtesy: Shutterstock MSFTMicrosoft Corp$523.58-1.86%Stock Score Locked: Edge Members Only Benzinga Rankings give you vital metrics on any stock - anytime. Unlock RankingsEdge RankingsMomentum84.86Growth95.77Quality70.15Value13.54Price TrendShortMediumLongOverviewNVDANVIDIA Corp$172.51-3.01%Market News and Data brought to you by Benzinga APIs