William Henry Gates III was born on 28 October 1955, in Seattle, Washington USA, of mixed English, Scots-Irish and German ancestry. Bill Gates is famous worldwide as the co-founder and former chief executive and chairman of Microsoft, the world’s largest personal computer software company, but is also known as a very generous philanthropist.
So just how rich is Bill Gates? Sources have recently estimated that Bill has a net worth of $89 billion, making him currently the richest person in the world. His wealth has been accumulated from his career as an inventor, computer programmer, businessman and investor.
Bill Gates Net Worth $89 Billion
Bill Gates’ father, William was a prominent lawyer, and his mother, Mary worked on the board of directors at First Interstate BancSystem and the United Way. Bill was educated at Lakeside School, and in 1973 enrolled at Harvard College, but dropped-out as he recognised an opportunity to set-up a computer software company with friend Paul Allen, being firmly convinced that the computer would become a valuable tool in every office and home. They officially established Microsoft in April 1975, with Gates as the CEO, and that point was the real beginning of Gates’ accumulation of net worth. According to their vision, they began developing software for personal computers: the rest really is history.
Under the direction of Bill Gates, Microsoft formed a partnership with IBM in 1980, and launched its first retail version of Microsoft Windows in 1985. Since then both Gates and Microsoft have gone from strength to strength in the computing industry. From 1975 until 2006, Gates had primary responsibility for the company’s product strategy, obviously successfully as Microsoft’s current market capitalisation is well over $385 billion – behind only Apple and Exxon – supported by constant research, innovation and inventions in the IT industry. Of course, Bill Gates’ net worth has risen commensurately with the success of the company over more than 30 years.
Bill Gates also has several investments outside Microsoft, which have all contributed to his net worth. He founded Corbis, a digital imaging company, in 1989. In 2004 he became a director of Berkshire Hathaway, the investment company headed by long-time friend Warren Buffett. Cascade Investment, LLC is an American holding and Investment Company controlled by Bill Gates. BgC3 LLC is a company founded by Gates, too. He invested in TerraPower is a nuclear reactor design spin-off company of Intellectual Ventures. All have contributed consistently to Gates’ net worth.
In 2006, Bill Gates relinquished hands-on control of Microsoft, and in 2014 announced his resignation as Chairman of Microsoft’s Board of Directors.
Bill Gates has authored two books: ‘The Road Ahead’ co- written with Microsoft executive Nathan Myhrvold and journalist Peter Rinearson, and ‘Business @ the Speed of Thought’ co-written with Collins Hemingway. Both have made a positive impact on Bill Gates’ net worth, as have several documentaries and feature films, including ‘Triumph of the Nerds’ directed by Paul Sen, ‘Waiting for “Superman”’ directed by Davis Guggenheim, ‘The Virtual Revolution’ a British television documentary series presented by Aleks Krotoski, ‘Pirates of Silicon Valley’ directed by Martyn Burke, and ‘The Social Network’ directed by David Fincher.
In his personal life, Bill Gates married Melinda French in 1994; they have three children. Although no longer private, a consequence of Gates’ wealth saw Bill and Melinda Gates establish the charity ‘Gates Foundation’ in 2000, which is one of the biggest foundations worldwide, with the aim of reducing poverty by educating people. The foundation is controlled by Bill, his wife Melinda and trustee Warren Buffett. The ‘Foundation’ has won the Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation and the Indira Gandhi Prize for Peace, Disarmament and Development.
