Angles of AI: Flexible Power, AI in Op-Eds, & Top Talent Moves 8/26/26

**SPEAKER_1** (0:00)
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Courage. I learned it from my adoptive mom.

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Hold my hand.

**Varun Sivaram** (0:31)
You hold my hand.

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Learn about adopting a team from foster care at adoptuskids.org.

**Becky Quick** (0:37)
You can't imagine the reward.

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Brought to you by Adopt US Kids, the US Department of Health and Human Services, and the Ad Council.

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Bring in show music, please.

**Cameron Costa** (0:47)
This is Squawk Pod and I'm CNBC producer Cameron Costa. On today's episode, Bill Gates has issued a 12-page warning on AI. And legendary investor Stanley Druckenmiller has used AI in his latest Wall Street Journal op-ed.

**Andrew Ross Sorkin** (1:03)
Oftentimes people like a Stan Druckenmiller, who might write an op-ed in the journal, might hire a PR firm or a writer or a speechwriter to write the speech for them. So what's the difference between a speechwriter or a second person doing it?

**Joe Kernen** (1:17)
Or AI.

**Cameron Costa** (1:19)
Then, former Labor Secretary Robert Reich joins us, and he's sharing his own concerns about AI.

**Robert Reich** (1:25)
There are going to be major, major job losses, particularly not just in blue collar but in white collar. But my second concern has to do with human beings losing control over AI.

**Cameron Costa** (1:36)
Plus, the economists take on wealth taxes, tariffs and US debt.

**Robert Reich** (1:41)
Scott Besson may reject the notion of a K-shaped economy, but the fact of the matter is we do have a K-shaped economy.

**Cameron Costa** (1:49)
Finally, a conversation about flexible energy supply for data centers. CEO of Emerald AI, Varun Sivaram, had an idea and the likes of Nvidia, Samsung and Salesforce have backed it.

**Varun Sivaram** (2:04)
This is not a gimmick. There actually is 100 gigawatts, academic research shows us 100 gigawatts of available capacity.

**Cameron Costa** (2:10)
If we can unlock it by making the data centers act in a different way, it is Wednesday, August 26th, 2026 and Squawk Pod begins right now.

**SPEAKER_1** (2:21)
Stand under by in three, two, one, cue Andrew.

**Andrew Ross Sorkin** (2:26)
Good morning and welcome back to Squawk Box right here on CNBC. We're live at the NASDAQ market site in Times Square. I'm Andrew Ross Sorkin along with Joe Kernen. Becky's off today.

**Joe Kernen** (2:35)
White House is looking at imposing more trade penalties on Canada, including higher tariffs. This is a Bloomberg report that we're citing yesterday. Canada announced it's going to hit the US with tariffs on $20 billion worth of US goods. That's a quid pro quo, if you remember that $20 billion number because that matches President Trump's latest move. It's 5 percent of the 900, whatever our trade is with Canada, it's not nearly as much.
It could ramp up and that could be a problem, but at this point, it's fairly small part of the US economy, at least more so for the Canadian economy. The tariffs range from 15 percent to 50 percent, and they target things like dairy products, seafood, and wood and paper products, scheduled to take effect if you're waiting on September 18th. In a call with CNN yesterday, President Trump responded to a Canadian claim that the US had made 11th-hour demands in trade talks that caused the breakdown over the weekend, and the president said, uh, that sounds like me. So, I don't know. Maybe it's a concession.

**Andrew Ross Sorkin** (3:52)
Meantime, we got a warning coming this morning from Bill Gates regarding AI, the billionaire laying out his thoughts on AI in a new 12-page essay that he published on his website. Gates writes that the transition to AI will be marked by what he's describing as extreme turbulence and asks how the most vulnerable to AI's disruption can be protected. He says, in terms of equity, AI will either be the greatest equalizer ever invented or the worst source of injustice. The challenge is monumental.
Gates calls rising to that challenge the world's top priority, but leaders and experts for not planning ahead for a world that could contain far fewer jobs, he says, than exists today. He warns that AI could replace human relationships and empower people to do more harm, though he also speaks of the upside of AI, including speeding up innovation in areas like healthcare and agriculture. Ultimately, Gates calls for designing a domestic and international framework for dealing with AI. I think the quote of the day that's going to be taken away from the essay is, quote, there is no plan.