No, Bill Gates didn’t warn of an ‘mRNA tsunami’ that will exclude people from society

Philanthropist and Microsoft Corp. co-founder Bill Gates has been a longtime advocate for vaccines, including the COVID-19 vaccines that use mRNA. 

But a recent Instagram post credits him with making a statement that it appears he never made about the technology sidelining unvaccinated people.

"Bill Gates: People who resist ‘mRNA tsunami’ will be excluded from society," read an image of what looks like a news headline. It includes what appears to be an X post from Gates that uses a syringe emoji and says: "A tsunami of mRNA is coming - whether you like it or not."

This post was flagged as part of Meta’s efforts to combat false news and misinformation on its News Feed. (Read more about our partnership with Meta, which owns Facebook and Instagram.)

First, we found no evidence that Gates said this on X; it doesn’t appear in his account. 

Second, the headline comes from an Aug. 27 post on a blog that has previously published false information. 

Third, the post offers no evidence that Gates said this. Rather, it attributes this quote to Moderna’s former chief science officer, Melissa Moore: "There is a coming tsunami of mRNA medicines." 

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stated on October 15, 2024 in a Threads post

Photo shows Vice President Kamala Harris and Sean “Diddy” Combs.

Moore’s quote is authentic; she said it during an April 2022 TED Talk,  "How mRNA Medicine Will Change the World." But she was talking about treating diseases, not vaccines. 

"If there's a protein that's missing to treat a disease then we could simply give a few copies of an mRNA to the body for it to produce that protein," Moore said. "If that protein's only needed once, then maybe a single dose would suffice. If a protein is needed multiple times, then we can dose mRNA over and over again. And that's exactly what's happening. So, when I went on clinicaltrials.gov this morning, it turns out that there are over 175 clinical trials now open using mRNA-based medicines that are recruiting patients. Another 54 clinical trials are waiting … ready to be opened. So, there is a coming tsunami of mRNA medicines."

Moore did not say that people who resist this tsunami will be excluded from society. 

We rate this Instagram post False.