Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has proposed creating jobs reserved for humans to prevent worker replacement by artificial intelligence, even when machines are capable of performing the tasks.
Writing in an essay published on Wednesday on his personal blog Gates Notes, the billionaire philanthropist argued that roles should be protected whenever human presence provides a special value.
The proposal, reported by the Portuguese news agency Lusa, outlines a framework for balancing technological advancement with workforce stability. Gates, who co-founded Microsoft in 1975 before transitioning to full-time philanthropic work, regularly uses his blog to address global economic and technological challenges.
Human Value in Caregiving and Public Services
Among the fields Gates identified for human preservation is childcare. Reflecting on his own family, he recalled the caregivers who looked after his father during the final stages of Alzheimer's disease, stating that their support contained an irreplaceably human element that no robot could or should replicate.
In sectors such as education and healthcare, Gates advocated keeping human workers on the frontline while positioning artificial intelligence strictly as a supporting tool.
He emphasized that the central question facing society is not simply which tasks machines can perform, but which jobs ought to remain in human hands. For instance, while an artificial intelligence system might possess the technical capability to inform a patient of an incurable diagnosis, Gates argued that machine intelligence should not be assigned such delicate communication duties.
Protection Periods and Workforce Impact
Under the proposed framework, certain professions would receive permanent protection from automation, whereas others would be reserved temporarily. Temporary designations would aim to ease career transitions for individuals who have worked in specific trades for decades.
Gates stressed that policymakers must act now to mitigate job losses and ensure that the economic prosperity generated by artificial intelligence is shared broadly across society. He estimated that up to 40 per cent of all jobs could fall into some form of human-reserved category.
However, the tech pioneer acknowledged that implementing such protections will present significant hurdles, noting that determining which specific roles to safeguard and deciding who holds the authority to make those selections raises major difficulties.
Taxation on Automation and Regulatory Safeguards
To fund the transition, Gates proposed reforming national tax systems to levy taxes directly on automation. This would include taxing the digital tokens processed by artificial intelligence software as well as physical robotic equipment.
The resulting tax revenues would offset the decline in income taxes caused by worker displacement while providing dedicated funding for worker retraining initiatives and social protection programs.
Gates also called for the immediate creation of national and international regulatory frameworks to govern artificial intelligence development. He warned that unregulated technology could empower malicious actors, potentially facilitating biological and cyber attacks against critical infrastructure such as hospitals, municipal water systems, and power grids.
