US EditionBill Gates cancels India AI summit keynote address amid fresh scrutiny over Epstein links
Gates withdrew amid scrutiny from newly released Justice Department files linking him to Epstein; the summit secured over $200 billion in AI investments, officials said.
- On Thursday , Bill Gates pulled out hours before his scheduled keynote at the India AI Impact Summit, and the Gates Foundation said Ankur Vora would speak instead.
- After the United States Department of Justice released files in January naming Gates, including draft emails with unverified allegations linked to Jeffrey Epstein, scrutiny intensified.
- Gates has said his interactions with Epstein were confined to philanthropy and that meeting him was a mistake, while documents show all interactions occurred after Epstein's 2008 conviction.
- Gates's absence, plus Jensen Huang's cancellation, compounded a difficult summit opening with organisational lapses, VIP traffic snarls in the city of 20 million people, and opposition parties attacking the Indian government.
- High investment stakes — including over $100 billion pledged during the summit from companies like Microsoft and Reliance — keep focus as the summit reopens on Friday .
162 Articles
162 Articles
Bill Gates pulls keynote after DOJ emails allege Jeffrey Epstein ties
Bill Gates pulls keynote after DOJ emails allege Jeffrey Epstein ties | 19 Feb 2026 | Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates pulled out of a keynote address at the India AI Impact Summit in New Delhi after weeks of scrutiny over his alleged ties to Jeffrey Epstein. Hours before Gates was scheduled to speak Thursday, Gates’s organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, released a statement informing the India AI Impact Summit that he would be pu…
Gates skips India AI summit amid Epstein scrutiny
Bill Gates pulled out of India's AI Impact Summit hours before his scheduled keynote on Thursday, as scrutiny over his ties to late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein intensified following the release of US Justice Department emails. The abrupt withdrawal of Microsoft's co-founder dealt a fresh blow to a flagship event already marred by organizational lapses, a robot row and complaints of traffic chaos. The six-day event still notched mo…
Microsoft’s Bill Gates abruptly pulls out of AI summit in India
Bill Gates pulled out of India’s AI Impact Summit hours before his scheduled keynote speech today, as scrutiny over his ties to late financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein intensified following the release of US Justice Department emails.
Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates suddenly cancelled his participation as lead speaker at a major artificial intelligence summit in India, amid renewed scrutiny of his past ties with controversial financier Jeffrey Epstein.Read more
Coverage Details
Bias Distribution
- 35% of the sources are Center
Factuality
To view factuality data please Upgrade to Premium
