Bill Gates is a well-known person who has put his money where his mouth is when it comes to saving the world. It would seem that this makes his opinions worth considering when he tells us that he scares that artificial intelligence could be a threat to humanity.

Gates stressed the concerns expressed over the past year by Musk, Hawking and others that something vaguely resembling the science fiction scenarios from the Terminator and Matrix franchises could come to pass if the potential of artificial intelligence is not taken seriously. Personal interests aside, Musk and Gates could just be right about the threat posed by artificial superintelligence.

Dozens of scientists, entrepreneurs and investors involved in the field of artificial intelligence, including Stephen Hawking and Elon Musk, have signed an open letter warning that greater focus is needed on its safety and social benefits.

The letter and an accompanying paper from the Future of Life Institute, which suggests research priorities for “robust and beneficial” artificial intelligence, come amid growing nervousness about the impact on jobs or even humanity’s long-term survival from machines whose intelligence and capabilities could exceed those of the people who created them.