AI cyberattacks are most imminent threat, Bill Gates says

Bill Gates said AI-powered cyberattacks are the most immediate threat from artificial intelligence, warning in an ABC News interview on Sunday that existing systems could be misused when safeguards are removed.

The Microsoft co-founder said the risk of AI “getting out of control” remained years away, while the current concern was “bad people” using the technology without restrictions.

“The front that we'll probably see most dramatically in the next year is cyberattacks,” Gates told ABC News. He said stronger limits were needed to prevent the use of AI in cyberattacks and bioterrorism.

Gates also rejected the idea that self-regulation by AI companies was enough to keep the public safe. He said society was “not doing enough” to oversee what he called the most dangerous technology humans had invented.