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Bill Gates addressed conspiracy theories about him wanting to track people with microchips through vaccinations.
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He responded with humor, asking “why would I want to track everyone?”
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Gates expressed concern about the lasting impact of the pandemic and misinformation surrounding it.
Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, has once again addressed the conspiracy theories surrounding his involvement in the COVID-19 pandemic. In an interview on BBC Radio 4’s “The Life Scientific,” Gates tackled the claim that he orchestrated a plan to implant trackable microchips in people through vaccinations. He responded with humor, asking “why do I want to track everyone?”
Gates recounted an encounter where someone confronted him on the street, shouting accusations. He joked, “I’m like ‘wow, I really don’t want to know your location.'” This isn’t the first time Gates has addressed these conspiracy theories, which began circulating early in the pandemic. In 2022, he expressed surprise at being the target of misinformation, posting on social media, “Some of it like me putting chips in arms doesn’t make sense to me — why would I want to do that?”
While acknowledging the absurdity of the claims, Gates also expressed concern about the lasting impact of the pandemic and the misinformation surrounding it. He stated, “In terms of deaths and mental health and learning loss and loved ones who died, we’re still paying a price for not having handled that well at all.” Gates’ response to these conspiracy theories highlights the importance of addressing misinformation and promoting factual information.
Trusted authorities like @WHO and @CDCgov need more resources to see the pandemic early (surveillance) and to communicate better. Social media got behind on trying to get factual information out – there will be a lot of debate about how to do better on that…
— Bill Gates (@BillGates) January 11, 2022
