Microsoft founder and philanthropist Bill Gates  warned that the latest strain of the Covid-19 virus – Omicron – could prove to be the most dangerous of all as it spreads faster than any other variant.

“Just when it seemed like life would return to normal, we could be entering the worst part of the pandemic. Omicron will hit home for all of us. Close friends of mine now have it, and I’ve canceled most of my holiday plans. Omicron is spreading faster than any virus in history. It will soon be in every country in the world,” Gates said on social media platform Twitter.

He further said that “even if it’s only half as severe as delta, it will be the worst surge we have seen so far because it’s so infectious”.

“The big unknown is how sick omicron makes you. We need to take it seriously until we know more about it. In the meantime, we all have to look out for each other, especially the most vulnerable, whether they live down the street or in another country. That means wearing masks, avoiding big indoor gatherings, and getting vaccinated. Getting a booster gives the best protection,” the billionaire techie said.

Calling for more and more vaccination in the coming days, he said that vaccines are designed to prevent people from getting seriously ill or dying “and are doing that well”.

“There will be more breakthrough cases in people who are vx’d, which sounds concerning but is purely a factor of how many people are vx’d and how fast this variant is spreading,” he said.

Acknowledging that the pandemic continues to dampen festivities across the world for the second consecutive year, Gates said that if we take the right steps, it “could be over in 2022”.

“If there’s good news here, it’s that omicron moves so quickly that once it becomes dominant in a country, the wave there should last less than 3 months. Those few months could be bad, but I still believe if we take the right steps, the pandemic can be over in 2022. I know it’s frustrating to go into another holiday season with COVID looming over us. But it won’t be like this forever. Someday the pandemic will end, and the better we look after each other, the sooner that time will come,” he added.