Bill Gates Letter “The Age of AI has Begun” Thoughts (Part 1)

Bill has been spending most of his time in philanthropy which has become his primary occupation, and has been contemplating the ways in which artificial intelligence can be leveraged to mitigate some of the most severe global inequities. The most grievous inequity on a global scale is in healthcare, with 5 million children under the age of 5 succumbing to preventable causes, such as malaria, annually. While this figure is down from 10 million two decades ago, it is still an alarmingly high number, and the vast majority of these children are located in impoverished countries. The use of AI to save the lives of children is an excellent application of this technology and should be looked into.

In the U.S, the best and most promising strategy to reduce inequality for quality of education is by improving math skills in students. Research shows that proficiency in mathematics provides a foundation for success in one’s career path regardless of industry. However, math achievement rates have been declining over the years, especially among low-income, latino and black students. AI has the potential of reversing that trend if used correctly.

The Gates foundation is anticipating that AI will continue to make an impact in issues that align with their mission. It is vital that everyone, including low-income individuals benefit from AI, not just the affluent. Governments and philanthropic organizations must step in to ensure that AI reduces inequity rather than contributing to it.

AI has the potential to improve education and global health because those two areas have the highest demand for qualified professionals to meet the demand for their services. AI can health reduce the disparity and inequity with these skill sets that are in demand and should be the primary focus of helping to ensure everyone benefits from these technological advancements. With healthcare being a large target for how large of an impact AI can make, let’s take a look into where AI may be useful.

AI in Healthcare

Healthcare is an area where AI can have a significant impact by improving the efficiency of medical professionals and reducing the burden of administrative tasks. Examples of these tasks include noting physician notes, filing insurance claims, and dealing with paperwork. Additionally, AI can be utilized to aid providers in poor countries where unfortunately under-5 deaths are prevalent by allowing for greater productivity and even enabling patients to seek advice on health issues that may arise.

The AI models used in poor countries will need to be trained on different diseases and languages than those utilized in wealthy countries since the features needed during the training will vary based on several social determinants and comorbidities. Furthermore, they will need to factor in unique challenges, such as access to healthcare that can change the outcomes of illnesses. Demonstrating evidence of the overall efficacy of AI in healthcare will be crucial, despite the fact that AI is not infallible and will make mistakes. Therefore, AI must undergo rigorous testing and regulation to ensure that it is safe and effective in practice which is what the FDA does today in the United States.

AI will also accelerate the pace of medical breakthroughs by processing vast quantities of data that are difficult for humans to manage. AI can identify pathways, search for pathogen targets, and design drugs accordingly to produce drugs faster and less costly. The next generation of tools will be even more efficient, predict side effects, and determine dosing levels. The Gates Foundation has been using these tools to address the health problems that disproportionately affect impoverished populations, such as malaria, TB, and AIDS.

The Gates Foundation has done several equity investments and philanthropic donations to multiple companies and nonprofits. One of which is Vir Biotechnology that is developing therapies for HIV and Malaria where the Foundation has made a $40M equity investment and $10M grant. The San Francisco based Vir is known for developing the COVID-19 monoclonal antibody called sotrovimab with Glaxo Smith Kline, which the U.S. Government has been acquiring from them to combat the Omicron virus. The approach that Vir Biotechnology is taking is to use the capital to extend their treatment approach and start clinical trials with a vaccine to help suppress HIV.

Another initiative of the Gates Foundation was to announce a 4 year commitment with the Swedish government with a $150M financing to help health supplies and vaccines for middle and low income countries.The financing started in 2022 and will continue until 2025. The first commitment to UNICEF came in 2015 when the Gates Foundation committed $15M to prevent vaccine shortages in Nigeria and have continued to finance the health inequities in the world. The capital has been deployed from the $2.5B Strategic Investment Fund and will help continue financing low and middle income countries to have adults and children access to essential healthcare. Over the years the Gates Foundation has made a handful of donations and investments annually to help speed up the research and development of more affordable care all over the world.

Bill Gates believes that governments and philanthropic organizations should provide incentives for companies to share AI-generated insights on crop and livestock management in poor countries. In this way, AI can contribute to the reduction of inequity in global health.

In conclusion, AI has the potential to make a great impact in healthcare, provided it is utilized with care and good judgment. AI can enhance the efficiency of medical breakthroughs and improve medical services. I am looking forward to how much AI can improve medical services and get the healthcare industry in the US to move from reactive based care to proactive based care. ScriptChain Health is strongly pushing forward with our product and FQHC’s can greatly benefit from their services since the highest readmission rate and access to care for underserved populations are served in the FQHC populations as part 2 of this blog.

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