New Delhi:
Microsoft co-founder and billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates believes that people need to be “pretty hard on” themselves if they wish to work hard and not fool themselves.
Last year, Mr Gates appeared in Zerodha co-founder Nikhil Kamath’s podcast series ‘People by WTF. ‘ The two discussed a variety of subjects ranging from artificial intelligence (AI) to special relationship with India. The second part of their conversation was released on YouTube on Friday, April 11.
In the show, Nikhil Kamath told Mr Gates that he always seems in a hurry whenever he is in India and asked whether he is hard on himself. He questioned the billionaire as to why he keeps running around “so much” and meeting politicians and others.
To this, Mr Gates said, “It is a lot of fun. No, I think if you want to work hard and not fool yourself, you better be pretty hard on yourself.”
The Microsoft co-founder has paid several visits to India, where he has held discussions with Prime Minister Narendra Modi and Union Ministers JP Nadda, Hardeep Singh Puri and Jitendra Sing,h among others. His most recent visit to the country was in March this year.
Elsewhere in the podcast, Nikhil Kamath sought Bill Gates’ views on whether a huge population is a boon or a bane from a “very capitalistic lens.”
In reply, the 69-year-old said that artificial intelligence would have “changed things enough” about two decades from now that it will “free up a lot of time”
“You know, you can retire early, you can work shorter work weeks. It’s gonna require almost a philosophical rethink about, okay, how should time be spent?” he added.
On being asked what people will do if they don’t have to work, he added, “I don’t have to work. I choose to work.”
Mr Gates thinks that it may not be that radical to think about whether people could retire at 40. “But if you said you never need to work at least to me… What? That is so different,” he stated.
Adding to this, Nikhil Kamath said that people can look forward to figuring out a hierarchy that might not look like the current one but is “another way to segregate ourselves.”
Mr Gates stated that the idea of pure communism, which is that everybody is totally the same, is a “pretty unnatural behaviour for humans.”
On his podcast, Nikhil Kamath even sought Bill Gates’ views on his philanthropic works, asking how it “make sense to want to make money while you want to also give away money?”
Full Episode 8, @BillGates Part 2
Live now: https://t.co/M4ha3oFWko pic.twitter.com/buX16cgTZa— Nikhil Kamath (@nikhilkamathcio) April 11, 2025
The podcast series was launched by Kamath on his YouTube channel last year, with Bill Gates being the first guest.
In the maiden episode, Bill Gates talked about his “fantastic relationship” with India and the “amazing people” he works with.
