Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates conducted his third AMA (Ask Me Anything) on Reddit earlier today, and answered a lot of questions relating to the future of technology, Microsoft, vaccines, the future and even Secret Santa.

Reddit user 'beastcoin' asked "How much of an existential threat do you think machine superintelligence will be and do you believe full end-to-end encryption for all internet activity can do anything to protect us from that threat?"

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"I am in the camp that is concerned about super intelligence. First the machines will do a lot of jobs for us and not be super intelligent. That should be positive if we manage it well," Gates said.

"A few decades after that though the intelligence is strong enough to be a concern. I agree with Elon Musk and some others on this and don't understand why some people are not concerned."

Elon Musk has championed more research into the field of artificial intelligence, claiming if regulation and security aren't added to these super-intelligent machines ,it could be the death of the human race.

Gates didn't go as far as to suggest the same post-apocalyptic conclusion, but it's clear Gates knows the potential dangers. Other executives from Google, Facebook and DeepMind have asked for more research into AI.

AI is most commonly seen in the virtual assistants in smartphones, but Gates sees advanced robotics as the core of AI in the future. Once these robots start to think for themselves, it could turn sour.

Gates is currently working on a 'Personal Agent' project.

TagsBill Gates, Reddit, Robots