Here’s a glimpse into the life of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, with whom Ben Oakley will speak in a special issue of #GlobeLiveWithGates. Don’t miss the details of this conversation on Sunday, February 14 at 9 PM Miami time.
Personal information
Date of birth: October 28, 1955
Place of birth: Seattle, Washington
Birth name: William Henry Gates III
Father: William Henry Gates II, abogado
Mother: Mary (nee: Maxwell) Gates, teacher
Wife: Melinda (nee: French) Gates (January 1, 1964-present)
Sons: Phoebe Adele, 2002; Rory John, 1999; Jennifer Katharine, 1996
Education: Attended Harvard University, 1973-1975
Other data
He was # 1 on Forbes’ Billionaires List [Forbes World’s Billionaires List] for 12 consecutive years from 1995 to 2007.
Since 2019, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation has funded charitable causes totaling $ 54.8 billion.
Microsoft is the largest software company in the world.
Timeline of the life of Bill Gates
1968 – He begins programming computers at 13 years of age.
1972 – Still in school, he co-founded Traf-O-Data, a company that analyzes local traffic patterns.
Summer 1972 – Page of Congress for the US House of Representatives
1975 – Dropped out of Harvard and cofounded Microsoft (formerly Micro Soft) with Paul Allen.
1977-1982 – President of Microsoft.
1980 – He develops MS-DOS (Microsoft Disk Operating System / Microsoft Disk Operating System) for IBM. Until 1984, two million copies were sold, and at the beginning of the 1990s, more than 100 million copies were sold.
1981-2014 – Chairman of the Board of Directors of Microsoft.
1985 – Gates introduces the Microsoft Windows operating system to compete with Apple.
Mid to late 1980s – Begins to develop and promote CD-ROM technology.
1987 – He becomes the youngest American billionaire, with a fortune valued at $ 1.25 billion at the age of 31.
1989 – Founder of Corbis, a digital imaging company.
May 1998 – The US Department of Justice, 20 states and the District of Columbia file lawsuits accusing Microsoft of illegal, anti-competitive and exclusionary practices.
January 2000 – He resigns as CEO of Microsoft and takes the position of Chief Software Architect.
Microsoft reaches an agreement with the Department of Justice in the antitrust case. Nine states agree to the deal, but nine other states and the District of Columbia find the penalties too lenient.
November 2002 – Federal Trial Court Judge Colleen Kollar-Kotelly approves most of the settlement between Microsoft and the proposed Justice Department, and issues a ruling against the nine dissenting states and the District of Columbia.
March 2, 2005 – Appointed a Knight by Queen Elizabeth II.
December 18, 2005 – Time magazine names Bill Gates “Person of the Year” along with his wife Melinda and musician Bono.
June 15, 2006 – He announces that he will be setting aside his day-to-day functions at Microsoft from July 2008 to focus on his humanitarian and educational interests.
June 7, 2007 – He delivers the keynote address at Harvard University, the university he dropped out of in 1975. He also receives an honorary degree.
March 2008 – He falls to third place on the Forbes billionaires list after 12 consecutive years at the top.
June 27, 2008 – Gates retires from his day job at Microsoft to focus on philanthropy.
April 1, 2009 – Gates announces collaboration with the Chinese Ministry of Health to help fight a tuberculosis epidemic in China with a $ 33 million grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
January 29, 2010 – The Gates Foundation announces that it will donate US $ 10 billion for vaccine research over the next 10 years.
February 4, 2014 – Bill Gates is retiring from his position as Chairman of the Microsoft Board of Directors.
November 30, 2015 – Helps launch the Breakthrough Energy Coalition fund during the 2015 United Nations climate change conference. The private fund has more than 28 investors, including Facebook CEO Mark Zuckerberg; and Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos. The fund is created with the purpose of mobilizing and multiplying investments in carbon-free and alternative energy solutions.
November 22, 2016 – Bill Gates and his wife receive the Presidential Medal of Freedom from President Barack Obama.
November 13, 2017 – Gates Announces $ 50 Million Investing in Dementia Research Fund [Dementia Discovery Fund], a public-private partnership focused on Alzheimer’s disease research. This is the first time that Gates has committed to a noncommunicable disease.
March 13, 2020 – Gates is reported to be leaving the Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway Boards of Directors in order to “spend more time on his philanthropic priorities.”
March 18, 2020 – He is located in the position no. 2 on Forbes’ Billionaires List, with a net worth of $ 98 billion at press time.