Microsoft billionaire Bill Gates is concerned about the development of super robots with the potential to threaten mankind.

In a Reddit “Ask Me Anything” session on Thursday, Mr Gates was asked about the “existential threat” posed by “machine superintelligence”.

• Bill Gates regrets not learning a second language
• Will your job survive the robot revolution?
• Get ready, hot chip vending machines are coming

“I am in the camp that is concerned about super intelligence,” Mr Gates responded.

“First the machines will do a lot of jobs for us and not be super-intelligent.

“That should be positive if we manage it well. A few decades after that, though, the intelligence is strong enough to be a concern.”

Mr Gates is joining the likes of Tesla founder Elon Musk and physicist Stephen Hawking in his concern about future superintelligence developments.

In December, Mr Hawking told the BBC he felt “the development of full artificial intelligence could spell the end of the human race”.

However, robotics experts have denounced this popular opinion, arguing a robot revolution would be fairly easy to end.

“The joke among robotics and A.I. researchers in general is if you want to avoid the robot revolution, walk into the middle of a puddle because the robot will short circuit,” Dr Justine Cassell, associate vice-provost for technology strategy and impact at Carnegie Mellon University in Pittsburgh, told the Huffington Post.

In the “Ask Me Anything” session, Mr Gates also spoke about the philanthropic work he and his wife Melinda are doing in third world countries, his regrets and his spending habits. Read it here.