Bill Gates wants to tax robots to deter businesses from replacing humans with machines

Bill Gates is arguing that the tax code is quietly pushing companies toward machines. In a new essay on his blog, the Microsoft co-founder says employers pay payroll taxes when they hire people, but can often write off a robot as a business expense right away. That, he says, creates a bias in favor of AI-empowered machines over human labor.

The timing isn’t random. Pew Research says 71% of U.S. adults think AI will mean fewer jobs over the next two decades, up from 64% in 2024. Only 5% think it will create more jobs. Younger people are worried too: 73% expect fewer career opportunities over the next 20 years.

Gates wants part of the response to come from taxing AI tokens and robots. He says governments will need the money because lower employment would mean less income-tax revenue, while demand rises for retraining and social security benefits. He also points to the strain on public finances after U.S. government borrowing hit $40 trillion.

His argument isn’t that every use of AI should be slowed down. He says a tax would only nudge the rush away from human labor and help fund retraining and a stronger safety net. And he says it should be aimed carefully so it doesn’t discourage what he sees as the good stuff, like making medicine and education cheaper.

This isn’t Gates’ first swing at the idea. He made the same suggestion nearly a decade ago, and it drew sharp criticism then from people including former Treasury Secretary Larry Summers and NYU Stern professor Robert Seamans. Gates now says critics miss the social value of work itself, even if the efficiency crowd would rather let the spreadsheet win.