Bill Gates Supports Farmers with Technology: No AI Takeovers”.

In a blog post on March 5, Bill Gates discussed how technology can assist farmers without advocating for replacing them with artificial intelligence. He highlighted his recent trip to India and the use of digital public infrastructure (DPI) in the city of Bhubaneswar to provide real-time updates and advice to farmers. Local media outlets covered the agricultural monitoring center that Gates visited during his trip to India.

Prior to his trip, Gates mentioned a successful program in India that provides real-time guidance to farmers through a chatbot using AI to tailor content to their needs in their local language. The program has been successful in reducing crop losses due to pests by 90% since its launch in 2018 and aims to increase farmers’ productivity and income through a collaboration between the Gates Foundation, the state of Odisha’s agriculture department, and tech company Samagra.

AFP found no evidence that Gates has advocated for replacing farmers with artificial intelligence, despite conspiracy theories suggesting otherwise. The Gates Foundation also confirmed that these claims circulating online are false. Samagra is responsible for projects like the AI-driven chatbot mentioned in Gates’s blog post, demonstrating how technology can be used to support and empower farmers without necessarily replacing them with artificial intelligence.