Bill Gates Biography

Fast Facts

• Was named one of the most influential people of the 20th century by Time magazine and he and his wife were also chosen as the magazine's Persons of the Year in 2005
• Awarded an honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire in 2005 and an Order of the Aztec Eagle by Mexico in 2006
• Formed the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation with his wife in 2000 to support the health, education, and development of world communities
• Attended Harvard University in 1973 but left one year later
• First became interested in computer programming at the age of 13 at the Lakeside School, where he met his friend and future business partner Paul Allen
• Created the computer program Traf-o-Data at the age of 15 with Paul Allen to monitor traffic patterns in Seattle, which earned them $20,000
• Quote: "Be nice to nerds․ Chances are you'll end up working for one․"
• Quote: "We are all created equal in the virtual world, and we can use this equality to help address some of the sociological problems that society has yet to solve in the physical world․"
• Formed the company Micro-Soft with Paul Allen in 1975, initially having trouble making a profit for their software because early computer enthusiasts would pirate it
• Best known as the founder and former Chairman and CEO of Microsoft
• Launched Microsoft Windows in November 1985 and created the Microsoft Office application bundle in 1989