Story preview

Bill Gates predicts AI will kill a billion people – but saying he’s been wrong before is quite the understatement | Arwa Mahdawi

the GuardianEnglish

About this story

He knows a thing or two about tech, but what to make of the views of a man who met Jeffrey Epstein 30 times and couldn’t see what a monster he was?

Summary from the Guardian

Section: Opinion
By: Arwa Mahdawi
Published: Sep 30, 2026, 10:00 AM UTC

Topics in this story

#bill #gates #predicts #kill #billion

Continue reading on the publisher site for the full article.

Read on publisher →theguardian.com

News Atlas is free and independent. If it’s useful to you, you can support it with a coffee. ☕ Buy me a coffee

Background

Context from Wikipedia on the organisations, people and places in this story.

Bill Gates

American businessman and philanthropist (born 1955)

William Henry Gates III is an American businessman and philanthropist. A pioneer of the microcomputer revolution of the 1970s and 1980s, he co-founded the software company Microsoft in 1975 with his childhood friend Paul Allen. Following Microsoft's initial public offering in 1986 and the subsequent increase in its stock price, Gates became the world's then-youngest billionaire in 1987, at age 31. Forbes magazine ranked him as the world's wealthiest person in their The World's Billionaires list for 18 out of 24 years between 1995 and 2017, including 13 years consecutively from 1995 to 2007.

Jeffrey Epstein

American financier and child sex offender (1953–2019)

Jeffrey Edward Epstein was an American financier and child sex offender. He began his career as a math teacher at the Dalton School in New York City, before entering the banking and finance sector. Over several decades, he made much of his fortune providing tax and estate services to billionaires, and cultivated an elite social circle of prominent individuals. In 2008, he was convicted of soliciting a minor for prostitution, and was indicted in 2019 for sex trafficking minors in the 2000s. He died in custody awaiting his trial and his death was ruled a suicide.

At a glance

Outlets covering it

in the last 3 days

First reported

4 days ago

Countries

Coverage

Tone

Who else is covering this

Where in the world it’s covered

Coverage over time

Tone of the coverage

About the publisher

the Guardian

Country: United Kingdom
Language: English

Visit the Guardian ↗

Latest from the Guardian

Comedy wildlife photography award finalists 2026 – in picturesThe GuardianUnited Kingdom24 hr. ago
We live in a rape-prone society. The horrific Cornell case reveals what that looks like | Rebecca SolnitThe GuardianUnited Kingdom19 hr. ago
Whales on Australia’s ‘humpback highway’ are at growing risk of injury from boat and propellor strikesThe GuardianUnited Kingdom5 hr. ago
Ukraine war briefing: Russian attacks on Kyiv bridges cause traffic chaosThe GuardianUnited Kingdom22 hr. ago
A billionaire is one of Trump’s loudest critics. Will Democrats send him to the White House?The GuardianUnited Kingdom13 hr. ago

Bill Gates predicts AI will kill a billion people – but saying he’s been wrong before is quite the understatement | Arwa Mahdawi

About this story

Background

Bill Gates

Jeffrey Epstein

At a glance

Who else is covering this

Where in the world it’s covered

Coverage over time

Tone of the coverage

About the publisher

Latest from the Guardian

About the publisher

Related topics

About the publisher

Latest from the Guardian

Background

Bill Gates

Jeffrey Epstein