Tech

Don't worry, Bill Gates hasn't fully figured out how to use AI at work either

Bill Gates, Founder of Breakthrough Energy and Co-Chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, speaks onstage at The New York Times Climate Forward Summit 2023 at The Times Center on September 21, 2023 in New York City.
Bill Gates has been using AI for some tasks, but it's a work in progress. Bennett Raglin/Getty Images for The New York Times
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If you haven't figured out how to make the best of AI at work, you might have something in common with Bill Gates.

The Microsoft cofounder released an end-of-year blog post on Tuesday that touched on AI's future among other things.

In the post, Gates reiterated his stance that AI was a revolutionary technology and predicted that countries like the US would see significant adoption of the tech in around 18 to 24 months.

Despite this, Gates said he still hadn't got it all figured out when it came to using AI himself.

While the billionaire said 2023 marked the first time he'd used AI for work, he also admitted to having trouble adopting the tech at times.

"If you haven't figured out how to make the best use of AI yet, you are not alone," he wrote. "I thought I would use AI tools for the foundation's strategy reviews this year, which require reading hundreds of pages of briefing materials that an AI could accurately summarize for me.

"But old habits are hard to break, and I ended up preparing for them the same way I always do."

There is already evidence that using AI at work can help employees be more efficient and capable at their jobs. The technology has the potential to supercharge employees, putting pressure on everyone to find ways to adopt the new tech.

But, if you aren't being your best AI self at work yet, don't worry about it — neither is Bill Gates.

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Beatrice Nolan was a tech reporter on the business news team in the UK. She joined Insider in January 2022 as a fellow on Business Insider's careers desk. Beatrice covered tech and the future of work, with a focus on artificial intelligence. Some of her stories and early experiments with ChatGPT are widely cited. Beatrice has also discussed her work covering AI trends on panels and radio shows, including NPR.She was based in Business Insider's London office and graduated from the University of  York with a bachelor's degree in English.Featured Articles:Artists say AI image generators are copying their style to make thousands of new images — and it's completely out of their control.ChatGPT was a black swan eventFinland is the world's happiest country, but Finns say we're confusing happiness for something elseThe world is splitting between those who use ChatGPT to get better, smarter, richer — and everyone elseThis man used AI to write and illustrate a children's book in one weekend. He wasn't prepared for the backlash.ChatGPT has only been around for 2 months and is causing untold chaosTwo professors who say they caught students cheating on essays with ChatGPT explain why AI plagiarism can be hard to proveChatGPT wrote college application essays. Admissions professionals said they passed for essays written by students but wouldn't have a chance at any top colleges.College professors are considering creative ways to stop students from using AI to cheatChatGPT wrote my cover letters. Here's how recruiters responded.