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Person

Bill Gates

Co-founder of Microsoft; co-founder of the Giving Pledge.

9 links, 8 backed by primary records

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Dates
28 Oct 1955 –
Place
Seattle
Also known as
William Henry Gates III
Background
Family ties
Over time
  1. Life 28 Oct 1955 –
  2. educated at Harvard University (left in 1975 without a degree (honorary degree 2007)) 1973–1975

Bill Gates co-founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975, in Albuquerque. He later turned to philanthropy.

In 2010 he, Melinda French Gates and Warren Buffett started the The Giving Pledge, which Elon Musk joined in 2012.

He is the son of the Seattle lawyer William H. Gates Sr. and of Mary Maxwell Gates, a United Way national board member. He learned to program at Lakeside School, where the Mothers Club paid for a computer terminal, and left Harvard University in 1975. In 1980 Microsoft won the contract for the IBM PC’s operating system, the IBM–Microsoft operating-system deal.

Connections 9

founded

relative of

citizen of

signed

educated at

  • Harvard University 1973–1975 left in 1975 without a degree (honorary degree 2007) Primary record 23
  • Lakeside School student; learned to program on the school's teletype Primary record 4

born in

Timeline 5 dates
  1. 28 Oct 1955 – Bill Gates
  2. 1973–1975 Bill Gates educated at Harvard University
  3. 1975 Bill Gates founded Microsoft
  4. 2010 Bill Gates signed The Giving Pledge
  5. Jun 2010 Bill Gates founded The Giving Pledge
Proof 11 sources
  1. Arch Capital Group Ltd. Schedule 13G/A (Amendment No. 3) filed by Cascade Investment, L.L.C. and William H. Gates III, Cascade Investment, L.L.C. and William H. Gates III, 11 Feb 2022. Primary record
    Mr. Gates is a citizen of the United States of America.
  2. Remarks of Bill Gates, Harvard Commencement 2007, Harvard University, 7 Jun 2007. Primary record
    For my part, I’m just happy that the Crimson has called me “Harvard’s most successful dropout.”
  3. Gates, Mary Maxwell (1929-1994), HistoryLink.org. Scholarship & press
    Bill Gates grew up in Seattle's Laurelhurst neighborhood and attended Lakeside School where he developed an interest in computers.
    His mother, Mary Gates, influenced him to become one of the highest-profile contributors to United Way and to start a gift-matching program at Microsoft.
  4. Remarks by Bill Gates at Lakeside School, Gates Foundation, 23 Sep 2005. Primary record
    When I came here as a 7th grader in the late 1960s, there were a number of faculty members who worked together to get a computer terminal on the campus.
  5. William H. Gates III: profile and interview, American Academy of Achievement. Scholarship & press
    William H. Gates III was born in Seattle, Washington
  6. Bio | Bill Gates, Gates Notes (gatesnotes.com). Self-published Archived copy
    He grew up in Seattle, Washington, with an amazing and supportive family who encouraged his interest in computers at an early age.
  7. Bill Gates (leadership biography), Gates Foundation. Primary record
    Bill co-founded Microsoft Corporation in 1975 with Paul Allen and led the company to become the worldwide leader in business and personal software and services.
    His late mother, Mary Gates, was a schoolteacher, University of Washington regent, and chair of United Way International.
    His late father, William H. Gates Sr., was an attorney and civic leader who served as a co-chair of the foundation from 2000 to 2020
  8. Microsoft Corporation annual report (Form 10-K), fiscal year ended June 30, 2026, Microsoft, 29 Jul 2026. Primary record
    Founded in 1975, we develop and support software, services, devices, and solutions that deliver new value for customers and help people and businesses realize their full potential.
  9. Twelve more U.S. families pledge majority of wealth to philanthropy, The Giving Pledge, 19 Apr 2012. Primary record
    Initiated by Warren Buffett and Bill and Melinda Gates in June 2010, the Giving Pledge is a long-term charitable initiative that aims to inspire conversations about philanthropy and increase charitable giving in the United States.
  10. Bill Gates Sr., father of Microsoft co-founder, dies at 94, Associated Press, 15 Sep 2020. Scholarship & press
    William H. Gates II, a lawyer and philanthropist best known as the father of Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates, has died at 94.
  11. About the Giving Pledge, The Giving Pledge. Primary record
    Bill Gates, Pledged in 2010
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