Bill Gates
Also known as William Henry Gates III
Co-founder of Microsoft; chair of the Gates Foundation; writes Gates Notes.
At a glance
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- Bill Gates is an American businessman and philanthropist.
- He co-founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975, ran it as CEO until 2000 and chaired its board until 2014.
- He co-chaired the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with Melinda French Gates from 2000 to 2024, after which it was renamed the Gates Foundation with him as sole chair.
- He also founded and chairs TerraPower, Breakthrough Energy and Cascade Investment, co-founded the Giving Pledge with Warren Buffett, and writes about books and ideas at Gates Notes.
Key facts
- Born
- 28 October 1955, Seattle, Washington1
- Studied
- Harvard University from 1973; left in 1975 to start Microsoft1
- Microsoft
- Co-founded it with Paul Allen in 1975; CEO 1975–2000, chairman 1981–2014, chief software architect 2000–2008; left the board in 20201
- Gates Foundation
- Co-chaired the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with Melinda French Gates, 2000–2024; then sole chair of the renamed Gates Foundation1
- Giving Pledge
- Founded it with Warren Buffett in 20101
- Other companies
- Founder and chairman of TerraPower, Breakthrough Energy, Cascade Investment, Gates Ventures and BEN1
- Presidential Medal of Freedom
- 2016, jointly with Melinda French Gates1
- Memoir
- Source Code: My Beginnings (February 2025), the first of three planned memoirs1
Roles
Founded
Connections
Links
Sources
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