Australian Minister Rejects Bill Gates’ AI Token Tax, Warns Against ‘Loser Narrative’

Australian Labor Minister Tim Ayres has rejected a call by Bill Gates for a tax on artificial intelligence tokens.

The Minister warned against a “loser narrative” promoted by big tech companies.

Speaking at the Australian Strategic Policy Institute’s Sydney Dialogue AI Masterclass, Ayres responded to a question about Gates’ recent essay calling for a levy on AI usage.

The Microsoft co-founder had argued such a tax could fund worker retraining and bolster social safety nets as AI displaces jobs.

Ayres said he was skeptical of claims from big tech firms that their own technologies would inevitably cause large-scale unemployment.

“I’m always slightly wary of an argument that large technology companies say that the consequence of the deployment of their technology will be large-scale job losses,” he said.

“Often, it’s in their interest to make that argument, right? That we should resolve these issues by doing anything but securing additional investment, employment and growth in Australia.”

“That is the Albanese Government’s answer here: more jobs, more growth, more Australian capability in the interests of communities, but also in our strategic interest, and that’s where we’re focused at the moment.”

The minister expressed concern that framing AI disruption as unavoidable served particular interests.

“I do worry that there’s a kind of loser narrative in that proposition that suits some interests and not others,” he said. Ayres called this a “loser narrative”: a story that casts workers as inevitable victims of AI, while letting the big tech companies set the terms of the debate.

Ayres emphasised that Australia needed to chart its own course on AI policy rather than adopt prescriptions from overseas technology executives.

“We have to develop an Australian pathway here that’s about making sure we’re delivering an Australian economy that acts in the interests of Australians, not the other way around, and that we’re shaping our future technological advantage in a pretty aggressive kind of way,” he said.

What Did Gates Warn?

This comes after Gates outlined the token tax idea in a nearly 6,000-word essay titled “The turbulent AI era is here,” published on his Gates Notes website on Aug. 26.

“I believe we should tax AI tokens and robots,” he wrote, arguing a targeted levy could slow the shift away from human labour while raising funds for retraining and welfare support.

He also floated the idea of “human reserved” jobs in areas including education and mental healthcare.

The Albanese government has been developing its own national AI framework since July, when the prime minister announced a new Office of AI within his department.

“This world-leading framework is about Australia choosing to shape the future rather than letting the future of AI shape us,” Albanese said at the time. “This framework is about protecting our national interests and ensuring certainty for growth, jobs, and investment.”