WHAT WAS CLAIMED
Bill Gates said defunding USAID will cause a mystery illness to spread across the world.
OUR VERDICT
False. Bill Gates did not say this.
AAP FACTCHECK - Billionaire philanthropist Bill Gates has been falsely accused of saying the shutdown of the US foreign aid agency would cause a "mystery illness" to spread around the world.
However, the social media claims have mischaracterised Microsoft co-founder's comment about the possibility of ending US-funded humanitarian food and medicine projects.
The Trump administration has attempted to dismantle the United States Agency for International Development (USAID), responsible for delivering foreign aid and development assistance.
On January 20, 2025, President Donald Trump issued an executive order pausing all foreign assistance for 90 days, with some exemptions.
The dismantling of USAID is being overseen by businessman Elon Musk, the world's richest man and a close Trump ally spearheading the president's effort to shrink the federal bureaucracy.
The fake quote attributed to Mr Gates appears in an X post featuring a clip of him being interviewed on US TV talk show The View.
"Bill Gates just issued an ALARMING WARNING!" the caption said.
"'Defunding USAID will bring about another mystery illness across the world. MILLIONS WILL DIE'."
The claim is also being shared on Facebook and Instagram.
During his appearance on The View on February 5 (EST), Mr Gates did not mention a "mystery illness" or say closing USAID would lead to another pandemic.
He did say it could lead to "millions of deaths" when asked about Mr Musk's influence on US politics.
"I'm a little worried particularly with this USAID stuff," Mr Gates said (timestamp three minutes 20 seconds).
"My foundation partners with USAID on nutrition and getting vaccines out. There's incredible people. They're not actually worms that work there.
"So hopefully we'll get some of that work back in shape. In fact, if we don't, you know, you could have literally millions of deaths."
USAID funds projects in around 130 countries with aims including fighting disease and famine, boosting education, providing clean water and other humanitarian initiatives, according to the Congressional Research Service (Page 1).
Following the discussion about Mr Musk and USAID, a co-host asked Gates if he still spent "sleepless nights" worrying about pandemics (timestamp 5:20).
"The pandemic, sadly, was fairly predictable. And it won't be the last pandemic. The next one could be far more severe," Mr Gates replied.
AAP FactCheck has debunked other false claims about USAID, related to celebrities and Ukraine, former Australian prime minister Kevin Rudd and the late sex offender Jeffrey Epstein.
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