At the Gates Foundation's Goalkeepers event in New York on September 22, 2026, Bill Gates said AI is developing rapidly and that progress from about a year ago shocked him, noting AI can write code, find vulnerabilities, and invade systems. He worried that society has not fully participated in discussions about the risks, describing the current transformation as "ten sci-fi novels happening at once" and comparing it to "aliens arriving." He stressed that AI differs from previous technologies and that its dual nature must be recognized. He also expressed regret over cuts in aid from wealthy countries to low-income nations, called for restoring funding, and urged combining philanthropic investment with proper AI use to accelerate global equity.