Bill Gates is calling for the creation of a national-level coordinating body and a new international organization to manage the disruptions of the transition into the artificial intelligence era. In a recent essay, Gates warns that AI could become "the worst source of inequity" as white-collar and blue-collar jobs alike face displacement by machines. However, he also notes that the technology could drive breakthroughs in clean energy, agriculture, and medicine, helping to resolve other major global challenges.

Speaking on May 8, 2025, in New York, the Microsoft co-founder issued a stark warning: humanity currently has no plan to address the social, political, and economic upheaval that artificial intelligence is about to unleash. He stated that AI has the potential to be "the greatest equalizer in human history, or the worst source of inequity," yet he sees no signs that "leaders, experts, and society at large are adequately confronting these challenges."

In an essay titled "The Turbulent AI Era Demands Critical Choices," published on his personal website, Gates Notes, on Wednesday, Gates argues that AI will displace workers across industries, shrink entry-level hiring, and force policymakers to rethink employment, education, and social safety nets. This piece marks a shift from his previous statements on the topic.

Gates, who collaborates with Microsoft and other AI firms through the Gates Foundation, previously described AI in an October 2025 interview as "the most transformative technology I have experienced in my lifetime," adding, "Its impact is so profound that its significance cannot be overstated."

In the essay, Gates proposes that new national institutions and international bodies will ultimately be necessary to coordinate and mitigate the evolving risks of AI on a global scale. "The challenge is immense. Even under the best-case scenario, the transition into the new AI era will be one of the most turbulent periods in human history," he wrote.

The billionaire philanthropist argues that unlike previous technological shifts, AI will replace human cognitive work across industries faster than displaced workers can transition into new roles. "We need time to prepare for the social, political, and economic upheaval that lies ahead," he wrote. "Unfortunately, we are not preparing for it now. I see no signs that leaders, experts, and society are adequately addressing these issues. We have no plan to help humanity navigate smoothly into the AI era."

Gates notes that white-collar employment is already feeling the impact, with sales, customer support, software development, and legal assistance among the first areas affected. In the future, AI could also take on tasks such as loan approvals, data analysis, and patient triage. As more capable robots become cheaper, blue-collar workers will also face pressure, while young people entering the labor market will confront shrinking job availability. "Those who need the most buffer time are precisely those with the fewest resources: an accountant replaced by intelligent software, or a worker earning $20 an hour displaced by a robot that costs just $10 an hour," he wrote.

Companies will use AI and robotics to cut costs and lower product prices, with industry competition accelerating the adoption of these technologies and forcing rivals to follow suit. "Robots plus AI will create a vicious cycle," Gates warns, noting that worker retraining and reemployment will bring significant social disruption.

Gates acknowledges his ongoing financial ties to the tech industry but also highlights that AI can accelerate innovation on some of the world's most intractable problems: ensuring reliable clean energy supply, tackling climate change, boosting food production, and eradicating disease. To navigate this transition smoothly, he calls for new national institutions to coordinate policies across employment, taxation, energy, elections, public health, financial systems, and national security. "Even if a country manages its domestic affairs well, it will still face risks that transmit across borders. That is why we need to establish an international organization in tandem," Gates said.

Such institutions could draw on existing frameworks, such as global nuclear weapons inspection mechanisms, international aviation regulations, and the ozone protection treaty. Gates adds, "A new global organization for AI would need to combine elements of all three of these institutional designs, and go further to refine them."