Bill Gates cancels AI summit appearance amid questions over Epstein ties

Bill Gates has pulled out of a keynote address at the AI Impact Summit in India as he continues to face questions over his relationship with the deceased child sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, The Guardian writes.

The billionaire Microsoft co-founder travelled to India, where his foundation works with the government on delivering AI for social good, earlier this week and was advertised as speaking at the international summit shortly after the country’s prime minister, Narendra Modi.

But Gates suddenly withdrew on Thursday morning, hours before he was due to address delegates.

The Gates Foundation said in a statement: “After careful consideration and to ensure the focus remains on the AI summit’s key priorities, Mr Gates will not be delivering his keynote address..”

While his foundation did not explicitly address what Gates feared might distract from the intended focus of the summit, the latest release of Epstein files in late January intensified the controversy surrounding his ties to the disgraced financier.

Gates has said he “regrets” ever knowing Epstein after allegations that he hid a sexually transmitted disease from his then-wife after contact with “Russian girls” surfaced in the latest release of the Epstein files.