Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has called on America to “tone down the rhetoric” regarding the threat from China as tensions mount between Washington D.C. and Beijing.
During a new interview, Gates discussed the strains between the United States and the Chinese Communist Party.
According to Gates, the U.S. should back down to avoid engaging in a “lose-lose” conflict with China.
Gates spoke with the German business outlet Handelsblatt about artificial intelligence, “climate change,” global threats, and success in life.
The billionaire was asked if tensions between the U.S. and China have reached a point of no return.
“I hope not,” Gates said.
“And we shouldn’t be” engaging in conflict, he continued
“The goals people in China and the goals the people in Europe have and the goals the people in the U.S. have, I don’t see them conflicting.
“I’m for toning down the rhetoric but it’s not headed in that direction,” he added.
Instead, Gates believes the world should work together on issues such as “climate change” and health technology.
He said “the willingness to see a shared future in solving tough problems” is the barrier limiting global collaboration.
In January, Gates said that China’s rise has been “a huge win for the world.”
He argues that the Chinese Communist Party should play a larger role in global governance.
Microsoft, $MSFT, co-founder Bill Gates said that ChatGPT is as significant as the invention of the internet.
— unusual_whales (@unusual_whales) February 10, 2023
Gates also discussed the future of artificial intelligence with Handelsblatt.
Artificial intelligence is the “most important” innovation happening right now and it will “change our world,” Gates believes.
“The progress over the next couple of years to make these things even better will be profound,” Gates said.
Gates co-chairs The Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, the philanthropic venture he co-founded with his ex-wife.
The foundation’s 2023 budget is $8.3 billion, a 15% increase from 2022 and a record high.
China is “an important strategic partner” and has a “long-term collaboration” with the Gates Foundation, its website says.
Gates’s foundation opened a China office in 2007.
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