Microsoft co-founder says governments must act early to protect workers as artificial intelligence transforms employment….
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has called for governments to reserve certain jobs exclusively for humans and introduce taxes on artificial intelligence and robots to limit the impact of automation on employment.
Gates made the proposals in a more than 6,000-word essay published on Wednesday on his Gates Notes website, where he warned that the transition into an AI-driven economy could fundamentally reshape how people work, earn money and organise society.
He suggested that some occupations could be placed in a category he calls “Human Reserved”, meaning they would be deliberately protected from full automation even when machines become technically capable of performing the work.
Gates said his thinking was influenced in part by his experience caring for his father, who died of Alzheimer’s disease in 2020.
He recalled how professional caregivers were able to understand his father’s needs even when he struggled to communicate.
“My dad died of Alzheimer’s in 2020. In the later stages of his illness, he was cared for day and night by paid caregivers who understood him even when he struggled to express himself.
“He couldn’t always tell them when he was hungry, but they always knew,” he wrote.
Gates said the experience demonstrated qualities of human care that technology may not be able to replace.
“Something in the care they gave my dad was irreplaceably human. No robot could or should have done it,” he said.
He argued that governments could therefore choose to protect certain professions where replacing workers with machines would cause significant economic or social disruption.
“For example, we may do it because allowing machines to take over a certain role will displace a large number of people who can’t easily change jobs.
“You can’t tell a 55-year-old who has worked in construction their whole career that they need to go work at an elder care facility and expect them to find it fulfilling.”
But Gates said economic considerations would not be the only reason for protecting certain professions.
He pointed to healthcare as an example, arguing that some interactions require human empathy even when machines could technically perform the task.
“In health, for example, imagine a robot giving you the awful news that you have an incurable disease. There’s no technical reason why it couldn’t. Yet it shouldn’t.”
Gates said education and mental healthcare could eventually combine human expertise with AI, with people remaining in charge while using technology to increase their effectiveness.
“The Human Reserved domain will evolve over time—for example, we should consider setting aside some jobs now and phasing in AI slowly over years or decades with a commitment to preserve some jobs.
“Some areas, like education and mental health care, will be a mix, with a human in charge who’s using the technology to extend what they can do,” he wrote.
He acknowledged that the jobs protected from automation could differ between countries depending on their labour needs and demographics.
Gates cited Japan, where an ageing population and shrinking workforce could make robotic assistance in elderly care more acceptable.
He said governments would have to resolve difficult questions surrounding who determines which jobs remain exclusively human, the criteria for making such decisions and how countries would handle differences in their approaches.
Gates also renewed his proposal for governments to tax AI and robots, arguing that current tax systems can make automation financially more attractive than employing people.
“I believe we should tax AI tokens and robots,” he wrote.
According to Gates, employers generally face payroll taxes when they hire workers, while purchasing machinery can often qualify as a business expense that receives favourable tax treatment.
“Right now, if you’re an employer and you hire someone, you pay payroll taxes on their earnings. But if you buy a robot, you can usually write it off right away as a business expense. The tax system nudges you toward replacing people with machines.”
He said an AI or robot tax could slow the pace of job displacement while generating funds for worker retraining and stronger social safety nets.
“A tax would slow the rush away from human labor a little and raise money for retraining and a stronger safety net,” he said.
Gates acknowledged that critics could argue such taxation would reduce economic efficiency, but maintained that employment has broader value for individuals and society.
“Critics of this idea point out that it’s not optimally efficient in an economic sense, but they’re not considering the broader value of work for individuals and society.
“And with all the accelerated innovation we will have, we’ll be able to afford a little inefficiency as the price for keeping people employed.”
He said he had advocated a robot tax for years despite the proposal initially being viewed as unusual.
“I proposed a robot tax years ago and most of the reaction was that it was a strange idea. I’m still a big proponent of it,” he said.
Gates stressed, however, that taxing AI and robots would not be enough on its own to address employment disruption.
He called for governments to ensure that any additional revenue reaches workers and communities most affected by automation, including those who lose jobs or experience reductions in working hours and wages.
“We need to start doing that work now so that the systems are ready when the need becomes acute,” he said.
Gates warned that governments should begin preparing before AI-driven disruption produces sharp increases in unemployment and social pressure.
“You have a chance to act now.
“Before unemployment rises sharply, communities are hurting, and public trust has eroded,” he told leaders.
He urged governments to develop coordinated AI policies rather than leaving responsibility divided among multiple institutions.
“You can make sure that your government handles the problem holistically, rather than divvying it up into multiple bureaucratic fiefdoms,” he said.
Gates also called for workers, students, parents, educators, community leaders and religious organisations to have a voice in determining how societies respond to AI-driven change.
He argued that the debate should not be left solely to technology companies and specialists because the consequences of AI will extend across the wider economy and society.
“I rarely stop thinking about AI—not because I have all the answers, but because the questions it raises are too consequential to leave to a small group of technologists.
“Leaders across academia, business, government, and civil society all have a role to play in shaping what comes next,” he said.
