Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has been the subject of controversy over his investments in land and food systems in the United States. Despite claims that he has advocated for replacing farmers with AI, AFP found no evidence to support this allegation. In fact, Gates’ foundation released a statement on March 27 stating that these rumors circulating online are false.
In a recent blog post, Gates discussed how technology can assist farmers and emphasized his trip to India where he visited an agricultural monitoring center in Bhubaneswar. The center provides government experts with advice and updates to 6.5 million farmers via phone, as local media outlets covered his visit. Prior to this trip, Gates mentioned the same topic in a blog post on February 25 where he detailed a program in India that offers real-time guidance to farmers through a chatbot that tailors information to their needs and in their local language. This program has significantly reduced crop loss due to pests and is a collaboration between the Gates Foundation, the Odisha agriculture department, and tech company Samagra. Although efforts were made to reach out to Samagra for comment, there was no response. Overall, Gates’ investments aim to improve farmers’ productivity and income by utilizing technology in agriculture.
