Editor’s note: This article was updated on June 4, 2020, to edit out misinformation within the article, and to accurately show Bill Gates’ comments on the Coronavirus disease. For a complete list of changes in the article, please see below.

The Microsoft co-founder has, like many other famous people, been talking about the COVID-19 coronavirus outbreak and what people can do to slow down the spread of the disease and help fight it off. He wrote on Reddit very recently that “Eventually, people will have some digital certificates” to control diseases like the Coronavirus.

TED recently interviewed Gates, and prior to that, he did a Ask Me Anything session on Reddit. In his Reddit AMA, Gates revealed something that took many people by surprise, eventually putting him in the sights of a few conspiracy theories that eventually took off and became viral.

During his Reddit session, Gates discussed “digital certificates” that reveals who has recovered from or been vaccinated against COVID-19. This has raised concern that the billionaire and philanthropist may want to implant microchips in everyone. But is that fear founded? Did he really say that? The answer is NO; Bill Gates was making reference to digital certificates—call them digital tattoos if you wish—through which scientists and health organizations can help prevent the spread of dangerous diseases, and not microchips.

Gates has been working to decrease the curve of severe diseases around the world, such as polio, with the help of his organization, the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. In the recent TED interview, Gates had an opinion on what he would be doing right now if he were president. He said he would prioritize isolation throughout the country, using as an example the period of several weeks that China and other countries fulfilled, managing to lower the number of infected considerably. He also called for an extreme quarantine lasting from 6 to 10 weeks.

Perhaps like many others, Gates too disagrees with President Donald Trump, who wants to see people working for holidays like Easter, commenting that he considers this to be a “very irresponsible” attitude.

So, what does Bill Gates say about “digital certificates” for the coronavirus vaccine?

Gates gave similar responses in his thread posted on Reddit. He said countries that do a good job with testing for the virus and remain in quarantine begin to see improvements in just weeks, after which he believes they should reopen and return to normal.

“Eventually, we will have some digital certificates to show who has recovered or been tested recently or when we have a vaccine which has received it,” Gates wrote on Reddit.

Gates is possibly referring to quantum dot tattoos that are currently being developed by researchers at MIT and Rice University.

These tattoos are designed to store each person’s “health record.”

Last December, researchers at the two universities stated that they were developing these tattoos after Gates urged them to find a solution to identify those who had not been vaccinated against various diseases.

Gates’ idea about the Coronavirus and how it should be treated has resulted in numerous divided opinions, and people on Reddit kicked off a massive debate.

In Gates’ Reddit comments, the man behind Microsoft said, “Eventually, we will have some digital certificates…” which probably means that the technology he was discussing is still in a very early stage of development. Therefore, it may be a little early to worry about someone forcing us to tattoo or implant microchips – beyond that is understandable considering the prevailing media-powered paranoia.

Update: June 4, 2020.

Curiosmos strives for accuracy in our reporting. After having revised the article published in March 2020, we have identified, with the help of Fact-check.org, inaccuracies in our reporting in both the title and its content.

The writer took out of context what Bill Gates commented in his REDDIT AMA, misinterpreting Gate’s idea of digital certificates as actual microchips implanted into the human body. This is not the case, and Gates was making reference to means through which scientists and doctors could help prevent diseases such as the Coronavirus; digital certificates.

What has been edited:

The title of the article has been corrected to display an accurate description of comments made by Bill Gates: “Bill Gates Wants To “Microchip” People to Help Fight Off Diseases Like the Coronavirus” has been edited to show “Here’s How Bill Gates Wants To Fight Off Diseases Like the Coronavirus.”

We have edited the following article: “Eventually, people will have some digital certificates” (aka microchips) to control diseases like the Coronavirus. We removed (aka microchips) since Bill Gates never mentioned the word microchip in his interview.

We have edited the following paragraph: “During his Reddit session, Gates discussed “digital certificates” that reveals who has recovered from or been vaccinated against COVID-19. This has raised the concern of many who fear that the billionaire and philanthropist may want to implant microchips in everyone. But is that fear founded? Did he really say that? The answer is yes; Bill Gates suggested such a thing; however, it is somewhat easier to say than to do.”

And updated it to show the following:

During his Reddit session, Gates discussed “digital certificates” that reveals who has recovered from or been vaccinated against COVID-19. This has raised concern that the billionaire and philanthropist may want to implant microchips in everyone. But is that fear founded? Did he really say that? The answer is NO; Bill Gates was making reference to digital certificates—call them digital tattoos if you wish—through which scientists and health organizations can help prevent the spread of dangerous diseases, and not microchips.

We have removed the following paragraph: “However, his most controversial comment was the one he made about “digital certificates” that would record whether or not someone has been vaccinated against COVID-19.” Because it is not accurate.

We have updated the following paragraph and corrected the correct spelling of CORONAVIRUS: Gates’ idea about the Coronavirus and how it should be treated has resulted in numerous divided opinions, and people on Reddit kicked off a massive debate.

We have removed the following paragraphs from the article since it fuels unnecessary debate about the digital certificates:

“In a related thread, people on Reddit debated whether Gates’ idea of these digital records could be applied now. One expressed concern that, in the near future, a microchip embedded in the body with a digital coronavirus vaccination record may be required in order to leave their homes. Others noted that governments have not required to have or done something similar to other vaccines, so they will most likely not do something like that in COVID-19‘s scenario.”

In the following article: In Gates’ Reddit comments, the man behind Microsoft said, “Eventually, we will have some digital certificates…” which probably means that the technology he was discussing is still in a very early stage of development. Therefore, it may be a little early to worry about someone forcing us to tattoo or implant microchips – beyond that is understandable considering the prevailing media-powered paranoia.

We removed “Therefore, it may be a little early to worry about someone forcing us to tattoo or implant microchips – beyond that is understandable considering the prevailing media-powered paranoia.” Since it makes false claims.