Bill Gates Facts: Net Worth, Achievements and History

Bill Gates was born into a well-educated and influential family in Seattle, Washington. His father, William H. Gates Sr., was a prominent attorney and served on several corporate and civic boards. He was known for encouraging public service and discipline, values that clearly shaped Bill’s later work ethic and philanthropy. Gates Sr. passed away in 2020 at the age of 94.

His mother, Mary Maxwell Gates, was a schoolteacher and later served on the boards of major organizations, including First Interstate BancSystem and the United Way (a community activism network). She was also the first woman to chair the board of Trustees of United Way of America. Crucially, it was Mary’s position on the board of IBM that led to a meeting between Microsoft and the tech giant, which was a turning point in the company’s early success. Mary Gates passed away in 1994.

Bill Gates married Melinda French in 1994 after meeting at Microsoft, where she worked as a product manager. The couple became well-known for their shared philanthropic work through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which they co-founded in 2000. 

After leaving Microsoft to focus on family and philanthropic work, Melinda became a driving force behind the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation which the couple co-founded in 2000, shaping many of its strategies in global health, education, and gender equity. In 2015, she launched Pivotal Ventures, an independent investment and incubation company focused on advancing women’s power and influence in the United States.

After 27 years of marriage, Bill and Melinda divorced in 2021. They continued to co-chair the foundation until June 2024, when Melinda stepped down with a $12.5 billion commitment from the foundation to continue her own philanthropic initiatives.

The Gates have three children:

• Jennifer Katharine Gates (born 1996), an equestrian and medical student.
• Rory John Gates (born 1999), who has kept a relatively private life, reportedly studying law and computer science.
• Phoebe Adele Gates (born 2002), an outspoken advocate for gender equality and arts education, active on social media.

Despite being one of the wealthiest individuals in the world, Gates has stated publicly that he plans to leave only a modest inheritance to each of his children, emphasizing the importance of independence and self-driven achievement.

Bill Gates was born on October 28, 1955, in Seattle, Washington, into a well-connected and intellectually curious family. From an early age, he showed a natural aptitude for logic, maths, and critical thinking.

He attended Lakeside School, an elite private prep school in Seattle, where he was first introduced to computers in 1968. Lakeside had secured access to a Teletype terminal connected to a mainframe computer. Young Gates quickly became captivated, teaching himself to code in BASIC and spending hours writing programs, often skipping math classes to code. During his time at Lakeside, he formed a close bond with fellow student Paul Allen. The two collaborated extensively, even starting a small venture at age 15 called Traf-O-Data, which analysed traffic patterns using a rudimentary computer. The business earned them around $20,000 — an early sign of Gates’ entrepreneurial instincts.

By the time he graduated, Gates had scored 1590 out of 1600 on his SATs and was recognized for his talent in math and science. He applied to and was accepted at Harvard University, setting the stage for the next major chapter of his life.

In 1973, Bill Gates enrolled at Harvard University, initially declaring a pre-law major. However, his true interests lay in mathematics and computer science. He spent much of his time in the university’s computer lab, experimenting with code and developing software, often at the expense of attending lectures.

While at Harvard, Gates continued to collaborate with Paul Allen, who had moved to Boston to work for Honeywell. In 1974, the two were captivated by the launch of the Altair 8800, an early personal computer. Seeing its potential, Gates and Allen contacted the machine’s manufacturer, MITS (Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems), claiming they had written a version of BASIC for the Altair — even though they hadn’t started yet. They worked around the clock to deliver the program, and it worked perfectly during the demo.

This moment led to the creation of Microsoft (originally “Micro-Soft”) in 1975. Gates made the bold decision to drop out of Harvard in his junior year to focus full-time on the new company. It’s a now-famous gamble that paid off — Microsoft would go on to become one of the most influential and profitable companies in history.

Bill Gates is best known for co-founding Microsoft, but his business footprint extends far beyond software. His portfolio includes both early startups to billion-dollar investment vehicles, demonstrating a consistent knack for identifying and capitalizing on long-term market value.

In 1975, Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft with the vision of placing “a computer on every desk and in every home.” The company’s big break came when it secured a deal to provide the operating system for IBM’s first personal computer. Rather than selling the software outright, Gates insisted on licensing MS-DOS — a move that ensured Microsoft would profit from every unit IBM sold.

This strategy fueled Microsoft’s rise through the 1980s and 1990s, culminating in flagship products like Windows, Office, and Internet Explorer. Gates served as CEO until 2000, then transitioned to Chief Software Architect before stepping away from day-to-day operations in 2008. He remained on Microsoft’s board until 2020.

In 2006, Gates co-founded TerraPower, a nuclear innovation company focused on creating safer, more efficient energy solutions. TerraPower is currently developing the Natrium Reactor, a next-generation nuclear system that could help reduce global carbon emissions.

This aligns with Gates’ broader climate and sustainability efforts and positions him as a long-term investor in clean energy technologies.

Founded in 2015, Breakthrough Energy is a network of investment funds, philanthropic programs, and policy initiatives aimed at accelerating innovation in sustainable energy and decarbonization.

The initiative has drawn support from other high-profile investors including Jeff Bezos and Michael Bloomberg, and supports ventures in green hydrogen, grid storage, and carbon capture.

Founded in 1995, Cascade Investment LLC is Gates’ private investment vehicle. It’s the engine behind his diversified wealth — holding stakes in public equities, real estate, farmland, and private companies.

Cascade manages tens of billions in assets, including significant positions in companies like Berkshire Hathaway, Waste Management, Caterpillar, and Canadian National Railway. These holdings reflect Gates’ long-term, value-driven investment philosophy — a strategy many investors look to emulate.

Bill Gates has consistently ranked among the richest individuals in the world for decades, which is a testament to the compounding power of long-term investments and intellectual property. Although he’s donated tens of billions through his philanthropic foundation, his net worth continues to grow thanks to stakes in Microsoft and a highly diversified investment portfolio managed through Cascade Investment.

Below is a year-by-year look at Gates’ estimated net worth, sourced from Forbes and Bloomberg data.

*2025 figure is a current estimate as of June.

Bill Gates stepped down from daily duties at Microsoft a few years ago now, so how does his wealth continue to grow? His net worth is no longer supplemented by a salary, but through smart investments and strategic equity positions. Here’s a breakdown of where his money comes from today.

Gates’ largest earnings vehicle is Cascade Investment LLC. Founded with proceeds from early Microsoft stock sales, Cascade manages:

• Public equity stakes (e.g. in Berkshire Hathaway, Canadian National Railway, Waste Management)
  
• Private assets, including Four Seasons Hotels and vast tracts of U.S. farmland
  
• Estimated total: over $130 billion AUM

Yes! Microsoft is publicly traded on the NASDAQ under the ticker symbol MSFT. It’s one of the most widely held and consistently profitable tech stocks globally, and remains a cornerstone of Gates’ portfolio.

Microsoft continues to outperform market benchmarks thanks to:

• Strong recurring revenue from Azure cloud services and Office subscriptions
• Healthy dividend growth
• A cash-rich balance sheet and expanding AI investments

Bill Gates is one of the most prolific philanthropists in modern history. Through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, he has donated more than $50 billion (USD) toward global health, education, and poverty reduction. But while many praise the scale of his giving, others argue that the very existence of billionaire philanthropy (with its tax breaks and private influence) raises difficult ethical questions.

Founded in 2000, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is one of the world’s largest private charitable organisations. It focuses primarily on:

• Global Health: Funding vaccines and treatments for malaria, tuberculosis, and HIV
• Agriculture: Supporting productivity for smallholder farmers in developing countries
• Education: Enhancing K-12 public education in the U.S.
• Sanitation & Clean Water: Investing in basic infrastructure for underserved communities
• Emergency Response: COVID-19 vaccine equity and pandemic preparedness

Unlike some philanthropic efforts that focus on feel-good causes or elite institutions, the Gates Foundation often aims to solve large-scale, structural problems affecting low-income regions, especially in Africa and South Asia.

Gates’ giving is largely top-down: funding institutions, large-scale partnerships, and technological solutions to global problems. That said, some programmes do funnel resources to grassroots implementers, such as local health workers and agricultural cooperatives.

But the key difference is scale over community. Gates’ impact is measured in disease eradication numbers, not small-scale community development.

• Net Worth (2025 estimate): $114.6 billion
  
• Microsoft Founded: 1975
  
• Shares of Microsoft Gates still owns (2024): Less than 1.4%
  
• Total Donated to Charitable Causes: $50+ billion
  
• Books Written: 5
  
• Years as World’s Richest Person: 18 (1995–2017, on and off)
  
• Estimated Farmland Owned via Cascade Investment: ~275,000 acres (largest private farmland owner in the U.S.)
  
• Foundation Endowment (2024): $67+ billion
  
• Countries Served by Gates Foundation: Over 130
  
• First Programming Sale: Age 17 (a school scheduling system)

1. He scored 1590 out of 1600 on the SAT.
2. He dropped out of Harvard after just two years to build Microsoft.
3. He reads about 50 books a year, and has said reading is his favourite way to learn.
4. His favourite business book is “Business Adventures” by John Brooks, recommended to him by Warren Buffett.
5. He was arrested in 1977 in New Mexico for a traffic violation — his mugshot is famous online.
6. He once memorised licence plates to track when employees arrived or left the office.
7. Gates has said he washes the dishes every night — and actually enjoys it.
8. He uses a “think week” twice a year, where he goes off-grid to read and reflect.
9. He’s been up against Jeff Bezos, Mark Zuckerberg and Elon Muk as the world’s richest person.
10. Dogs are his favourite type of animal, and he owns several Labrador Retrievers.
11. He co-founded the Giving Pledge, asking billionaires to commit to giving away the majority of their wealth.
12. He’s fluent in BASIC — not just the language, but as a foundational coding skill.
13. He’s a cryptocurrency skeptic and has called NFTs “100% based on greater fool theory.”
14. He’s invested heavily in climate tech, including clean nuclear power (TerraPower).
15. He has three children, each reportedly inheriting ‘only’ $10 million.
16. Gates helped launch the Global Polio Eradication Initiative, reducing cases by 99% since 1988.
17. He owns a rare Leonardo da Vinci notebook (the Codex Leicester), bought for over $30 million.
18. He’s appeared on “The Big Bang Theory” as himself.
19. He still uses a yellow legal pad for many ideas, despite being a tech mogul.
20. He’s a bridge fanatic and often plays with Warren Buffett.
21. He wears a $10 Casio watch, proving that flashy wealth isn’t his thing.
22. He once ranked himself as a “very tough” boss, admitting he had to learn to be more patient over time.
23. His former estate, Xanadu 2.0, is a 66,000 sq ft smart house on Lake Washington with a trampoline room and 24 bathrooms.
24. He was an early investor in Impossible Foods, backing plant-based meat alternatives.
25. He blogs regularly at GatesNotes, where he shares book reviews, climate thoughts, and philanthropic updates.

Bill Gates’ long career has been punctuated by innovation, influence, and a fair amount of controversy. From courtroom battles to global accolades, here are key moments that have shaped public opinion on this billionaire.

1975: Co-founding Microsoft: At just 19 years old, Gates dropped out of Harvard to co-found Microsoft with Paul Allen in a move that would redefine the software industry.

1980: The IBM Deal: Microsoft’s licensing deal to supply MS-DOS for IBM PCs gave it a near-monopoly on operating systems. Gates’ business acumen was already world-class.

1986: Microsoft IPO: The IPO instantly made Gates a multimillionaire.

1987: Record-Breaking Wealth: Gates became the youngest billionaire in history at age 31.

2000: Launch of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation: With a focus on health, education, and equity, the foundation became one of the most powerful philanthropic entities on the planet.

2007: Harvard Honorary Degree: Despite famously dropping out, Gates received an honorary degree from Harvard and gave a memorable commencement address.

2010: The Giving Pledge: Alongside Warren Buffett, Gates launched the Giving Pledge, encouraging billionaires to commit at least half their wealth to philanthropy.

2015–present: The GatesNotes Blog: His personal blog became a go-to destination for book reviews, climate opinions, and reflections on global progress.

2020: Pandemic Prediction Spotlight: A 2015 TED Talk in which Gates warned about global pandemic risks went viral in 2020, gaining renewed attention for his foresight.

1998: U.S. v. Microsoft Antitrust Lawsuit: Gates was at the center of a landmark antitrust case, where Microsoft was accused of maintaining a software monopoly. His deposition came across as evasive and combative, drawing widespread criticism. While Microsoft avoided being broken up, it altered its practices substantially.

2021: Divorce from Melinda French Gates: After 27 years of marriage, the divorce shocked many and prompted scrutiny of Gates’ private life and business associations.

2021: Links to Jeffrey Epstein: Gates’ meetings with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, even after Epstein’s initial conviction, raised eyebrows and reputational concerns. While Gates said he “regrets the association,” the damage to public perception was notable.

Criticisms of Philanthropy: Though his charitable donations are vast, critics argue the Gates Foundation wields too much private power in global health policy — often lacking transparency and democratic oversight. Others highlight the tax advantages that make billionaire philanthropy more beneficial to the donor than it appears on paper.

Climate Investments Scrutiny: While Gates has positioned himself as a climate innovator, some of his investments such as synthetic meat and carbon capture are viewed as top-down or inaccessible, raising concerns about whether they truly address root issues or simply reinforce existing power structures.

Accusations of Tax Avoidance: Like many ultra-wealthy individuals, Gates has faced scrutiny over aggressive tax minimization strategies, often routed through charitable entities.

Bill Gates is undeniably one of the most influential figures of the digital age. But his public image – once mostly associated with nerdy genius – has become more complicated over time. Depending on whom you ask, he’s either a brilliant changemaker, a shrewd monopolist, or a symbol of the problems with billionaire-led progress.

Bill Gates has delivered hundreds of memorable lines over the decades, but they’re often taken out of context, or are cut off before the end of the thought. Below are some of his most quoted remarks, alongside where and when they were made.

“Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can’t lose.”
⤷ From his book “The Road Ahead” (1995).

“Your most unhappy customers are your greatest source of learning.”
⤷ Quoted in “Business @ the Speed of Thought” (1999).

“I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it.”
⤷ Often attributed to Gates in workplace culture speeches, though not verified in print.

“If you’re born poor, it’s not your mistake. But if you die poor, it’s your mistake.”
⤷ Frequently attributed, but not verifiably sourced — used widely in motivational media.

“Philanthropy should be taking much bigger risks than business. If these are easy problems, business and government can come in.”
⤷ From a 2014 interview with the Financial Times.

“Wealth comes with responsibility. A responsibility to give back to society.”
⤷ Paraphrased from multiple speeches around the Giving Pledge (2010–onward).

“The internet is becoming the town square for the global village of tomorrow.”
⤷ From a 1999 article in The Washington Post.

“I believe that if you show people the problems and you show them the solutions, they will be moved to act.”
⤷ TED Talk, 2010.

“To win big, you sometimes have to take big risks.”
⤷ Quoted from various keynotes; ties back to early Microsoft decisions.

“I read every night. I don’t watch a lot of TV.”
⤷ From a Reddit AMA (Ask Me Anything), 2014.

“Don’t compare yourself with anyone in this world. If you do so, you are insulting yourself.”
⤷ Frequently attributed online, likely paraphrased from Gates’ interviews on personal growth.

More than just the co-founder of Microsoft, Bill Gates is a global symbol of how innovation, strategic thinking, and long-term vision can create staggering wealth and fuel large-scale philanthropy. His journey from Harvard dropout to tech mogul and global health advocate is packed with lessons for entrepreneurs, investors, and anyone interested in the mechanics of modern influence.

While his net worth continues to fluctuate, Gates has steadily moved his attention from software dominance to global impact, all while maintaining a hands-on role with his investments. Whether you admire his relentless curiosity, his approach to giving, or simply want to peek into his stock portfolio, one thing is clear: Bill Gates remains one of the most influential billionaires of our time.