Bill Gates' 1999 predictions come to life: A look back

The predictions Bill Gates shared a quarter of a century ago have come true, prompting some to call him the "new Nostradamus." As the website ladbible.com reminds us, those predictions of the founder of Microsoft can be found in his book "Business @ the Speed of Thought" from 1999.

In the publication, Gates predicted the emergence of price comparison websites. He stated they "will be developed, allowing people to see prices across multiple websites, making it effortless to find the cheapest product for all industries."

Another accurate prediction from Gates was the widespread access to mobile phones. The president of Microsoft predicted that it would be possible to "check the news, see flights they have booked, get information from financial markets, and do just about anything else on these devices."

Widespread access to the internet allows us to shop, send money to friends, and check our bank balance while travelling — as Gates predicted. He also foresaw giving medical advice over the internet, which is becoming increasingly common practice.

That's not all. Bill Gates predicted that everyone would have "the device [that] will check your email or notifications, and present the information that you need. When you go to the store, you can tell it what recipes you want to prepare, and it will generate a list of ingredients that you need to pick up." Sound familiar?

In his 1999 book, Bill Gates predicted that in the future, we would be able to use home monitoring systems, which will allow us to view what is happening in real-time. While it may not be a universally used solution, the Microsoft founder was right this time, too.

As early as 1999, Gates predicted that to stay in constant contact with family or friends, we wouldn't have to travel to them, as we could connect through "Private websites for your friends and family ..., allowing you to chat and plan for events."

Gates' accurate predictions also included personalized ads, which, knowing our interests or plans, would adjust the displayed offers and advertisements. The programmer predicted the dominance of advertising in our lives, predicting that future ads would contain links for viewers to search for them online, scan QR codes, or follow the brand on social media.

Bill Gates stated a quarter of a century ago that sports fans would be able to discuss live what's happening in matches and other sports events while they are happening. He also predicted the emergence of virtual discussion forums that would allow us to discuss issues that are most important to us with our friends and neighbours. He added that "Online communities will not be influenced by your location, but rather, your interest."

He also predicted the possibility of remote work and the creation of tools that would enable it. "Project managers looking to put a team together will be able to go online, describe the project, and receive recommendations for available people who would fit their requirements," he wrote in his book. He also predicted remote recruitment.