Bill
Gates

Born William Henry Gates III on October 28, 1955, in Seattle, Washington, to prominent attorney William H. Gates Sr. and civic leader Mary Maxwell Gates; raised in an upper-middle-class family with older sister Kristianne and younger sister Libby, in a competitive household that encouraged reading, intellectual debate, board games, and outdoor activities like swimming and pickleball.

Early childhood in Seattle's Sand Point neighborhood; family emphasized education and self-reliance; showed early signs of exceptional intelligence, voracious reading habits (including encyclopedias), and a distinctive rocking motion when concentrating, traits noted throughout his youth.

Continued family life in Seattle; parents fostered competitive environment through games and puzzles; young Bill demonstrated strong memory and analytical skills, often winning at strategy-based activities.

Ongoing early development; family attended Congregational church; parents encouraged curiosity and learning, providing books and educational toys in a supportive home environment.

Attended local preschool; teachers later described him as rebellious with little concern for routine school activities; preferred independent exploration and reading over structured play.

Enrolled in public elementary school; excelled academically but sometimes bored, leading to behavioral challenges; parents supported his intellectual pursuits at home.

Continued public schooling; family home provided stable, enriching environment with access to books and encouragement of critical thinking.

Family home damaged by rare tornado in 1962; experienced bullying due to small stature and introspective nature; deepened interest in reading science fiction and reference materials.

Ongoing elementary education; developed reputation as bright but withdrawn child; family vacations and activities reinforced competitive spirit and problem-solving skills.

Attended public school; showed aptitude in math and science; parents began noticing need for greater academic challenge.

Continued schooling; avid reader, spending hours with encyclopedias and novels; family dynamics emphasized achievement and public service.

Public school years; demonstrated strong logical thinking; parents considered options for more stimulating education.

Final year in public elementary; parents decided to enroll him in private school for better intellectual stimulation; explored early interests in puzzles and strategy.

Enrolled at exclusive Lakeside School private preparatory in 1968; school acquired Teletype terminal linked to computer, sparking lifelong passion for programming; taught himself BASIC, wrote first programs including tic-tac-toe; befriended older student Paul Allen and formed Lakeside Programmers Club.

Deepened programming at Lakeside; exploited system bugs for extra computer time (initially banned, then allowed for testing); collaborated with friends on school projects.

Continued intense computer work at Lakeside; automated class scheduling system with Paul Allen; excused from some classes to pursue programming.

Ongoing Lakeside studies; explored commercial programming opportunities; collaborated with Paul Allen and others on early software ventures.

Co-founded Traf-O-Data with Paul Allen to process traffic data using Intel 8008; served as congressional page in U.S. House; graduated Lakeside as National Merit Scholar with near-perfect 1590/1600 SAT score.

Enrolled at Harvard University pre-law but focused on math and computer science; took advanced courses including Math 55; met future Microsoft executive Steve Ballmer.

Continued Harvard studies; published pancake sorting algorithm with professor; spent summer working with Paul Allen at Honeywell; closely followed microcomputer developments.

Dropped out of Harvard in 1975 to co-found Microsoft with Paul Allen after seeing Altair 8800 in Popular Electronics; developed BASIC interpreter; moved operations to Albuquerque near MITS.

Microsoft grew rapidly; wrote 'Open Letter to Hobbyists' against software piracy; hired early employees; focused on programming languages.

Microsoft independent; relocated to Bellevue, Washington area in 1979 (age 23-24 span); expanded product line.

Ongoing Microsoft leadership; company established strong position in software for microcomputers.

Continued expansion; mother Mary Gates' connections helped introduce Microsoft to IBM executives.

Secured pivotal IBM deal for PC operating system; licensed 86-DOS and developed MS-DOS; restructured Microsoft with Gates as president and chairman.

MS-DOS shipped with IBM PC; rapid growth; Paul Allen diagnosed with cancer and left company.

Ongoing Microsoft dominance in PC software; began development of graphical interfaces.

Announced Windows as graphical extension for MS-DOS.

Continued Windows development; met future wife Melinda French at Microsoft.

Launched Windows 1.0 in November 1985; initial mixed reception but set foundation for future versions.

Microsoft IPO in 1986 made Gates youngest self-made billionaire; relocated headquarters to Redmond, Washington.

Ongoing leadership; Windows 2.0 released; began collaboration with IBM on OS/2.

Founded Corbis image licensing agency; Windows growth accelerated.

Continued Microsoft expansion; personal net worth surged.

Windows 3.0 released in 1990, massive success with over 10 million copies sold.

FTC investigation into Microsoft practices began; ongoing product development.

Continued dominance; relationship with Melinda deepened.

Published first book 'The Road Ahead' in 1995 (age 40 span); Windows 95 launched majorly.

Married Melinda French on January 1 in Hawaii; Windows 95 global phenomenon with huge marketing campaign.

Net worth exceeded $12 billion; antitrust scrutiny intensified.

Daughter Jennifer Katharine born in 1996; ongoing Microsoft leadership amid Internet Explorer integration.

U.S. v. Microsoft antitrust case filed; Windows 98 released.

Published 'Business @ the Speed of Thought'; son Rory John born in 1999.

Stepped down as CEO in 2000, became chief software architect; Steve Ballmer succeeded; co-founded Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation with major stock donation.

Foundation focused on global health and education; Windows 2000 and XP development.

Antitrust settlement; daughter Phoebe Adele born in 2002.

Continued philanthropy expansion; Microsoft Xbox entered gaming.

Ongoing foundation work; received awards including Time Person of the Year with Melinda and Bono.

Announced gradual Microsoft transition in 2006 (age 51 span); full-time philanthropy shift planned.

Received honorary Harvard degree; foundation grew to world's largest.

Completed Microsoft day-to-day transition in 2008; focused on global health initiatives like polio eradication.

Co-founded Giving Pledge with Warren Buffett; major donations to vaccines and education.

Ongoing foundation leadership; Reinvent the Toilet Challenge launched.

Stepped down as Microsoft chairman in 2014, became technology advisor.

Founded Breakthrough Energy Ventures for clean energy; received Padma Bhushan and Presidential Medal of Freedom.

Continued climate and health work; published books on climate.

Ongoing philanthropy; Netflix documentary 'Inside Bill's Brain'.

Resigned from Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway boards in 2020 amid personal scrutiny.

Focused on COVID-19 response through foundation; vaccine investments and advocacy.

Announced divorce from Melinda in 2021; foundation restructured; published 'How to Avoid a Climate Disaster'.

Continued global health efforts; relationship with Paula Hurd began publicly.

Ongoing clean energy investments; became grandfather as Jennifer welcomed children.

Advocated for innovation in AI and energy; foundation milestones in child health.

Resigned from some roles; focused on memoir writing and philanthropy.

Stepped down from day-to-day foundation co-chair; major political donations.

Ongoing climate advocacy; family updates with grandchildren.

Continued global health commitments; book projects.

Announced upcoming memoir; foundation progress reports.

Published memoir 'Source Code: My Beginnings' in February 2025 covering early life; confirmed relationship with Paula Hurd; major donations including to political causes.

Turned 70 in October 2025; announced plan to give away virtually all wealth over next 20 years through Gates Foundation; continued focus on global health, child mortality reduction, climate innovation, and AI; received international honors; foundation pledged billions for vaccines and poverty alleviation amid ongoing Goalkeepers initiatives.