by Ashutosh Jogalekar
Bill Gates has long been one of the world’s leading optimists, and his new documentary, “What’s Next,” serves as a testament to his hopeful vision of the future. But what makes Gates’s optimism particularly compelling is that it is grounded not in dewy-eyed hopes and prayers but in logic, data, and an unshakable belief in the power of science and technology. Over the years, Gates and his wife Melinda, through their foundation, have invested in a wide array of innovative technologies aimed at addressing some of the most pressing issues faced by humanity. Their work has had an especially transformative impact on underserved populations in regions like Africa, tackling fundamental challenges in healthcare, energy, and beyond. In this new, five-part Netflix series, Gates showcases his trademark pragmatism and curiosity as he engages with some of the most complex and important challenges of our time: artificial intelligence (AI), misinformation, inequality, climate change, and healthcare. His approach stands out especially for his willingness to have a dialogue with those with whom he might strongly disagree.
Episode 1: “What Can AI do for us?”
In the first episode, Gates delves into the world of artificial intelligence, a topic of both fascination and fear. He speaks with leading researchers at companies like OpenAI, exploring the transformative potential of AI, and even brings in science fiction luminaries like James Cameron to provide a broader cultural context. As Cameron wryly notes, the pace of AI development has made much of science fiction obsolete, an observation that underscores just how quickly this technology is evolving.
But the episode also raises important concerns about the ethical implications of AI. As Gates and the experts explore, AI has the potential to drastically reshape society—not just technologically but emotionally. For instance, the growing reliance on AI for decision-making and even companionship could have unforeseen consequences on human relationships and autonomy. The potential loss of huge slices of jobs to AI is another well-known concern. Ultimately, a recurring theme throughout the episode is the importance of ensuring that AI development keeps a “human-in-the-loop,” emphasizing the need for ethical guardrails as we push the boundaries of what this technology can achieve.
Episode 2: “Truth or Consequences?”
In some ways this is the most interesting episode of the series since it explores a topic of red hot current interest: the rise of misinformation. Gates talks to a number of interesting commentators, including ethics experts, journalists and even Lady Gaga who has had to deal with misinformation about her from a very young age. Many of the commentators agree that while misinformation has been around since forever, the megaphone and amplification it has been provided by social media is a qualitatively new phenomenon.Gates himself makes an honest effort to understand crazy misinformation about him, especially conspiracy theories spread during COVID (my favorite: Gates, through his huge farmland investments, is infecting the public with genetically-engineered viruses through McDonalds’s cheeseburgers). He finds common cause with Anthony Fauci who has also been subjected to fear mongering and rumors. Ultimately, important questions are raised about the balance between free speech and the potential harm that this amplification can cause, harm that is qualitatively different from when one person could reach a dozen others through letters or activism.
Episode 3: “Can We Stop Global Warming?”
This is one of Gates’s favorite topics, and one he knows a lot about, so it’s packed with stories of innovation. The Gates Foundation routinely funds and explores startups which are trying to curb global warming using novel experimental technologies: CO2 scrubbing, new ways of producing carbon-neutral cement (the most used material substance in the world; even more so than water), new modular nuclear reactors and biofuels. Each of these has limitations but all will likely be part of a healthy mix. Perhaps the most important question explored in this episode is an economic and moral one: How do we incentivize our present generation to save energy and cut down on carbon emissions, possibly taking a hit to their lifestyle, for the sake of future generations? Our addiction to cheap fossil fuels might seem to preclude this. Only capitalist incentives combined with activism would encourage people to make these sacrifices, which is why it’s especially important to invest, as Gates does, in new startups that promise to make money. But innovation alone will not be enough to raise awareness. Gates engages with climate activists, many of whom advocate for more radical measures, but he gets them to acknowledge that innovation and market incentives must also play a role. Despite their differences, both Gates and the activists seem to find common ground in their shared goal of saving the planet.
Episode 4: “Can You Be Too Rich?”
Another hot-button issue is explored in this episode, the question of income inequality. Once again Gates tries to have good faith debate and dialogue with those who might think differently, like Bernie Sanders who points out that Gates and two other people in the U.S. own as much wealth as fifty percent of the population. Gates strongly agrees that the rich should be taxed more than they are currently, but disagrees that any kind of enforced cap would do it. The question of whether there should be billionaires does not have a simple answer, because the very existence of billionaires is in some sense a result of the enormous opportunities for advancement in capitalist economies. Gates talks to economists who debunk the idea, prevalent on the left, that the U.S. is a ‘hypercapitalist’ society. In fact, with its Social Security, Medicare, unemployment insurance and other welfare benefits, the United States is fairly “socialist” already. But it’s also true that we lag behind other countries like Denmark and Finland when it comes to things like paid parental leave, universal healthcare and childcare, and need to do better on these fronts.
A profound question, one only briefly touched upon in this episode, is the question of whether someone like Bill Gates does far more good by spending his money on his different causes than what the U.S. government would have done by taxing him the same amount. In his particular case I believe he does; it would be hard to imagine the U.S. government using $50 billion of Gates’s money to make the same promising investments in energy innovation, disease prevention and vaccine development that his foundation has made. But the general question remains: How do we have a tax plan that uses the government to effectively invest people’s earnings without putting onerous burdens on them? This is not an easy question to answer, but having the rich pay their fair share of taxes would be a good start.
Episode 5: “Can We Outsmart Disease?”
This last episode focuses on the work the Gates Foundation is best known for, through the lens of a single disease that exemplifies their efforts: malaria. Malaria afflicts poor people of color in Asia and Africa; in other words, it represents an unprofitable market for pharmaceutical companies. The Gates Foundation has funded and supported multiple attack fronts in the war against malaria: vaccines, drugs and simpler but effective measures like bed netting. Perhaps the most interesting part of this episodes centers on the creation of genetically altered malarial mosquito females which, when released into the wild, will ensure sterile babies. If enough of them will be released, we could potentially see the end of malaria.
The reason this development is so interesting is especially because of its social ramifications. While the solution has huge potential, convincing communities in Africa to adopt this new solution is no easy task, especially given the historical legacy of colonialism and exploitation in the region. The last thing many Africans want is for Western medicine to conduct a giant experiment on their communities, something that has all too often happened without their consent. But the episode ends on a hopeful note by showing the village elders in many communities in Africa convince the women in the village of the wisdom of this revolutionary treatment, not because it was developed in the West but because it could save their children’s lives. It is clear that only when multiple stakeholders with different incentives work together that thorny problems like malaria, with both scientific and sociopolitical ramifications, can be solved.
I would highly recommend watching Gates’s new series. In many ways it is a model for how to think about our biggest problems through innovation, good faith dialogue and empathy. We need much more of this kind of thinking in our world.