Budapest Post

Cum Deo pro Patria et Libertate
Budapest, Europe and world news

Bill Gates is ‘very optimistic’ about the future: ‘Better to be born 20 years from now...than any time in the past’

Bill Gates spends a lot of his time sounding the alarm over existential global threats, like climate change and future pandemics. Yet the billionaire Microsoft co-founder and philanthropist says he's still "very optimistic" about humanity's future on Earth. Even with challenges facing current and future generations, Gates says anyone born in the next few decades will be better off than people born at any previous point in history.
"I'm still very optimistic that it'd be much better to be born 20 years from now, 40 years from now, 60 years from now than any time in the past," Gates said Monday in an interview at the Lowy Institute, a think tank in Sydney, Australia.

The world is full of disheartening trends, Gates noted — like an inadequate global response to the Covid-19 pandemic, governments' failures to meet stated goals for tackling climate change and increased political polarization in the U.S.

In October, a Gallup poll found that only 42% of Americans believe today's youth will have "a better living standard" than their parents. That number is 18 percentage points lower than in 2019 and tied for the lowest level of optimism in roughly three decades based on similar polls in the past, according to Gallup.

But pessimists miss the full picture, Gates said: "It's easy to get a more negative view of some of these trends than is really fair, in my view."

Gates pointed to advances in public health, noting that global mortality rates for children under the age of five have been cut in half over the past two decades.

"The amount of innovation that is [for] the improvement overall in the human condition is still going to be dramatic. We will cure obesity, we will cure cancer, we will eradicate polio," Gates said.

Gates has also praised the potential for cheap and effective green energy technology in recent years, and technological advances enabling education and health workers to have greater reach across the world.

"The amount of IQ in the world that's being educated, the quality of the tools we have to drive forward our innovation, whether it's in health or energy or education, those are fantastic things," Gates said Monday.

Looking further back into history, it's clear that things are only continuing to get better, he added.

"Zoom out and say 'OK, where were we 300 years ago?'" Gates asked, noting that the average lifespan for human beings has vastly improved over the past three centuries. In 1700, the average person died before reaching age 40. Today's life expectancy in the U.S. is 76.1 years.

"It didn't matter if you were a king or a pauper, you were subject to huge infant mortality and extremely low levels of literacy," Gates said. "So, the scope of human innovation over time ... is a phenomenal story."

Innovation isn't guaranteed to have positive outcomes, Gates noted: Technological and scientific evolution can result in dangerous advances, like nuclear weapons or bioterrorism.

"Modernity comes with some risks, as well," he said. "But, overall, I'm incredibly optimistic."
AI Disclaimer: An advanced artificial intelligence (AI) system generated the content of this page on its own. This innovative technology conducts extensive research from a variety of reliable sources, performs rigorous fact-checking and verification, cleans up and balances biased or manipulated content, and presents a minimal factual summary that is just enough yet essential for you to function as an informed and educated citizen. Please keep in mind, however, that this system is an evolving technology, and as a result, the article may contain accidental inaccuracies or errors. We urge you to help us improve our site by reporting any inaccuracies you find using the "Contact Us" link at the bottom of this page. Your helpful feedback helps us improve our system and deliver more precise content. When you find an article of interest here, please look for the full and extensive coverage of this topic in traditional news sources, as they are written by professional journalists that we try to support, not replace. We appreciate your understanding and assistance.
Newsletter

Related Articles

0:00
0:00
Close
IMF Upgrades Global Growth Forecast as Weaker Dollar Supports Outlook
House Republicans Move to Defund OECD Over Global Tax Dispute
France Opens Criminal Investigation into X Over Algorithm Manipulation Allegations
Trump Steamrolls EU in Landmark Trade Win: US–EU Trade Deal Imposes 15% Tariff on European Imports
ChatGPT CEO Sam Altman says people share personal info with ChatGPT but don’t know chats can be used as court evidence in legal cases.
Intel Reports Revenue Beats but Sees 81% Rise in Losses
Politics is a good business: Barack Obama’s Reported Net Worth Growth, 1990–2025
UN's Top Court Declares Environmental Protection a Legal Obligation Under International Law
"Crazy Thing": OpenAI's Sam Altman Warns Of AI Voice Fraud Crisis In Banking
The Podcaster Who Accidentally Revealed He Earns Over $10 Million a Year
UK Government Considers Dropping Demand for Apple Encryption Backdoor
Japanese Man Discovers Family Connection Through DNA Testing After Decades of Separation
Russia Signals Openness to Ukraine Peace Talks Amid Escalating Drone Warfare
Switzerland Implements Ban on Mammography Screening
Pogacar Extends Dominance with Stage Fifteen Triumph at Tour de France
President Trump Diagnosed with Chronic Venous Insufficiency After Leg Swelling
CEO Resigns Amid Controversy Over Relationship with HR Executive
NVIDIA Achieves $4 Trillion Valuation Amid AI Demand
Tulsi Gabbard Unveils Evidence Alleging Political Manipulation of Intelligence During Trump Administration
Centrist Criticism of von der Leyen Resurfaces as she Survives EU Confidence Vote
Trump Announces Coca-Cola to Shift to Cane Sugar in U.S. Production
FIFA Pressured to Rethink World Cup Calendar Due to Climate Change
Zelensky Reshuffles Cabinet to Win Support at Home and in Washington
"Can You Hit Moscow?" Trump Asked Zelensky To Make Putin "Feel The Pain"
Church of England Removes 1991 Sexuality Guidelines from Clergy Selection
Superman Franchise Achieves Success with Latest Release
Hungary's Viktor Orban Rejects Agreements on Illegal Migration
Air India Pilot’s Mental Health Records Under Scrutiny
Jamie Dimon Warns Europe Is Losing Global Competitiveness and Flags Market Complacency
Moonshot AI Unveils Kimi K2: A New Open-Source AI Model
Martha Wells Says Humanity Still Far from True Artificial Intelligence
Nvidia Becomes World’s First Four‑Trillion‑Dollar Company Amid AI Boom
EU Delays Retaliatory Tariffs Amid New U.S. Threats on Imports
Trump Proposes Supplying Arms to Ukraine Through NATO Allies
US Opens First Rare Earth Mine in Over 70 Years in Wyoming
Bitcoin Reaches New Milestone of $116,000
Severe Heatwave Claims 2,300 Lives Across Europe
Declining Beer Consumption Signals Cultural Shift in Germany
Emails Leaked: How Passenger Luggage Became a Side Income for Airport Workers
Polish MEP: “Dear Leftists - China is laughing at you, Russia is laughing, India is laughing”
Western Europe Records Hottest June on Record
BRICS Expands Membership with Indonesia and Ten New Partner Countries
Elon Musk Founds a Party Following a Poll on X: "You Wanted It – You Got It!"
China’s Central Bank Consults European Peers on Low-Rate Strategies
France Requests Airlines to Cut Flights at Paris Airports Amid Planned Air Traffic Controller Strike
Poland Implements Border Checks Amid Growing Migration Tensions
Emirates Airline Expands Market Share with New $20 Million Campaign
Amazon Reaches Milestone with Deployment of One Millionth Robot
Yulia Putintseva Calls for Spectator Ejection at Wimbledon Over Safety Concerns
House Oversight Committee Subpoenas Former Jill Biden Aide Amid Investigation into Alleged Concealment of President Biden's Cognitive Health
×