As Bill Gates predicted Technology 2022 almost 30 YEARS ago – but he got two things wrong

BILL Gates chillingly predicted many of the gadgets we enjoy today nearly 30 years ago — though he didn’t get it right.

Excavated video from 1994, the Microsoft founder shows many things that are common today, from contactless payments on our phones to on-demand TV shows.

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The old presentation looked ahead to what might exist in 2005.

While most of the predictions were spot on, not all were as quick and some were slightly different.

In it, Gates showed several clips of how work and personal life would change dramatically.

These included mobile devices, which he referred to as “wallet PCs,” that allow you to receive messages and make wireless payments via infrared.

He described it as an “adult pager”.

Of course, its naming is a bit off and contactless payment wasn’t made with infrared, but better Near Field Communication (NFC) technology instead.

“It’s capable of replacing really everything you’re carrying and then some,” he said at the time.

“So with this kind of technology, it’s easy to get the news, see the latest news, see different places, keep track of your schedule, and store hundreds of pictures of your kids in there.”

The presentation, held on November 14, 1994 at the COMDEX exhibition, also dealt with tablet-like devices.

In it, we saw how cops could see maps and talk to their boss in live video.

“We can see the different police cars in the city and the traffic conditions on this map,” Gates said.

“Whether you are looking for a shop, a hotel or a restaurant, you can get guided on the way there in a very simple way.”

And in the home setting, we see a woman transitioning between episodes of David Letterman and Oprah Winfrey as she wished, instead of being dependent on TV station programming, which we all take for granted today.

The woman, who stars in the mini-film, also jokes about leaving her slippers on because she’s on a conference call and no one will see her bottom half – a habit many who are now working from home have broken with since the pandemic work, will be familiar.

“You’re no longer tied to the specific schedule that this show comes out on…anything you want to do, you’re in control,” he said a long time ago.

“This means mobile workers of all types can collaborate, draw on expertise from around the world, bring it up and not just see their face, but look at information like the video we’re playing here.”

Although he got many things right, no one could predict everything exactly.

Amusingly, the billionaire kept mentioning the “information superhighway,” which wasn’t a term that caught on.

In the end we just know it as the Internet.

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