![Walter Mossberg and Kara Swisher interview Steve Jobs and Bill Gates at 'D5: All Things Digital' conference in Carlsbad, California, in 2007. Quotes made during the time of the photograph. [1] Kara: "What you think each has contributed to the computer and technology industry, starting with you, Steve, for Bill, and vice versa." Steve: "Bill built the first software company in the industry and I think he built the first software company before anybody really in our industry knew what a software company was, except for these guys. And that was huge. That was really huge. And the business model that they ended up pursuing turned out to be the one that worked really well, you know, for the industry. I think the biggest thing was, Bill was really focused on software before almost anybody else had a clue that it was really the software." Walt: "Bill, how about the contribution of Steve and Apple?" Bill: "Well, first, I want to clarify: I’m not Fake Steve Jobs . [Peals of laughter.] What Steve’s done is quite phenomenal, and if you look back to 1977, that Apple II computer, the idea that it would be a mass-market machine, you know, the bet that was made there by Apple uniquely—there were other people with products, but the idea that this could be an incredible empowering phenomenon, Apple pursued that dream. Then one of the most fun things we did was the Macintosh and that was so risky. People may not remember that Apple really bet the company. Lisa hadn’t done that well, and some people were saying that general approach wasn’t good, but the team that Steve built even within the company to pursue that, even some days it felt a little ahead of its time—I don’t know if you remember that Twiggy disk drive and…"](/assets/images/2026-08-26T21-37-14-626Z-bill-gates-warns-ai-could-be-greatest-equalizer-or-worst-source-of-injustice-wikimedia-1280.webp)
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On Tuesday, August 26th, 2026, Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates expressed a stark warning about the future of artificial intelligence (AI), stating it could become either the “greatest equalizer ever invented” or the “worst source of injustice.” In an essay published on his website, Gates Notes, Gates emphasized the urgent need for society to prepare for AI’s profound impacts. He also suggested that current leaders are not adequately addressing the challenges posed by this rapidly advancing technology.
Gates’ remarks highlight the dual-edged nature of AI, underscoring the importance of proactive governance and policy-making to harness its benefits while mitigating risks.
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