Here's What Bill Gates Said He Would Ask A Time Traveler From The Year 2100

On a recent episode of his podcast "Unconfuse Me," Bill Gates said that his first question to a time traveler from the year 2100 would not be about personal or financial interests but rather on the state of humanity.  

During the podcast, the Microsoft co-founder told Hannah Ritchie, a data scientist from the University of Oxford and author of "Not the End of the World," that he would ask whether humans are thriving.

"In the end, it’s all measured through human welfare," he said. 

During their conversation, Gates asked for Ritchie's input on questions to pose to a time traveler. In her response, Ritchie suggested, "What percentage of the world’s population can sustain on $20 per day by 2100?"

Ritchie noted that the response would shed light on future poverty rates and indicate whether there has been progress in areas such as health, agriculture, and poverty alleviation.

“My assumption would be that climate change hadn’t had extremely devastating impacts, where agriculture was ruined and health outcomes were really poor, and people were plunged into poverty,” she added.

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Gates initially leaned toward questions about energy production and artificial intelligence, and was curious whether future societies would rely on fusion, fission or unforeseen energy sources and how AI could shape their world.

However, reflecting on Ritchie's perspective, Gates acknowledged the importance of focusing on the general quality of life as the ultimate measure of humanity's future success.

Gates continues to play a pivotal role in global discussions on technology, climate change and public health, even after retiring from his position at Microsoft.

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This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.

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