When Microsoft founder Bill Gates moved from his Chairmanship of the Microsoft Board to his new role as "Technology Advisor," he committed to spending up to a third of his time working on Microsoft-related projects.
(We did hear he was working on a new "Meeting-Room-Plus" type conferencing system last fall. I'm betting that is what evolved into the recently introduced Surface Hub.)
In a January 28 Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything), his third such appearance, Gates told participants he was working on a "Personal Agent" project with the company. He didn't offer many specifics.
When asked what he believed the next 30 years would hold in terms of personal computing technology, Gates said:
Gates added:
It's not clear if this new Personal Agent is related to Cortana, Microsoft's personal-digital assistant technology. Or maybe it's a new application for the aforementioned Surface Hub -- something that would complement the customized Skype for Business, OneNote and Connect applications that are bundled with that system? Beyond that, I have no idea.
In today's Reddit AMA, Gates also (unsurprisingly) said he was bullish about the coming Microsoft HoloLens augmented-reality glasses.
He also called Bitcoin "an exciting new technology," but noted it didn't have much applicability to the work the Gates Foundation is doing with the poor.
"Overall financial transactions will get cheaper using the work we do and Bitcoin related approaches," however, he noted.
My favorite question (and answer) in today's Gates Reddit:
Q: Can you still jump over a chair? http://m.imgur.com/r/gifs/lFU1t3A
Gates: A shorter chair every decade I am afraid.
In a previous Reddit AMA, Gates disclosed his biggest product regret at Microsoft was WinFS.
ZDNet
