Contrary to Elon Musk, CEO of Tesla, who believes artificial intelligence could result in the development of weapons of terror, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates is optimistic about the technology.
AI could make humans' lives more productive and creative, Mr. Gates wrote in the foreword of Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's book, Hit Refresh, which Mr. Gates made available on his blog.
"Think of all the time we spend manually organizing and performing mundane activities, from scheduling meetings to paying the bills. In the future, an AI agent will know that you are at work and have ten minutes free, and then help you accomplish something that is high on your to-do list," Mr. Gates wrote. Innovation will have even bigger implications for human life, he adds, such as genome sequencing, which has the potential to eradicate polio.
However, Mr. Gates is careful to address the AI-skeptics, adding that "with every new technology, there are challenges … Will users trust their AI agent with all their information?"
Regardless, Mr. Gates writes we should all be optimistic about what is to come. "The world is getting better, and progress is coming faster than ever."
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