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Birth
Born in Washington, United States. Born to William and Mary Gates. -
Writting his First Software Program
He was just 13 when he wrote his first software program on the school’s computer -
Attending Lakeside School
Attended Lakeside School graduating from high school scoring 1590 out of 1600 on the SAT. -
Bill Gates and Paul Allen collaborating
Bill Gates and Paul Allen collaborated to found Microsoft (initially called Micro-Soft) in 1975. -
Attending Harvard College
Attended Harvard College -
International Business Machine's Proposal
He was approached by International Business Machine (IBM) with a proposal that Microsoft write the BASIC interpreter for IBM’s upcoming personal computer, the IBM PC. -
Creating the PC DOS Operating System
In 1980 Microsoft created the PC DOS operating system which they delivered to IBM in exchange for a one-time fee of $50,000. -
Introducing Windows
Soon Microsoft’s operating systems became very popular and the company introduced an operating environment named Windows, as a graphical operating system shell for MS-DOS. Over the following years Windows came to dominate the world’s personal computer market acquiring over 90% market share. -
Introducing Microsoft Office
The package integrated several applications like Microsoft Word and Excel into one system that was compatible with all Microsoft products. -
Meeting Melinda French
Bill Gates met Melinda French, a young woman working at Microsoft. -
Winning His First Award
Won the National Medal of Technology and Innovation Award -
Getting Married to Melinda French
Got married in 1994 to Melinda French. They have three children now named Jennifer Katharine Gates, Phoebe Adele Gates, and Rory John Gates -
"William H. Gates Building"
In 1999, he donated US $20 million to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) for the construction of a computer laboratory which was named the "William H. Gates Building" in his honor. -
Retaining his Position as Chairman
In January 2000, Gates stepped down as Chief Executive Officer of Microsoft though he retained his position as chairman. -
Recieving the Bower Award for Business Leadership
Gates received the Bower Award for Business Leadership from The Franklin Institute in 2010 in recognition of his achievements at Microsoft and his philanthropic work. -
Signing the "Gates-Buffet Giving Pledge"
In 2010, Gates along with fellow billionaire investors Warren Buffett, and Facebook founder and CEO Mark Zuckerberg signed the "Gates-Buffet Giving Pledge", committing to donate at least half of their wealth over the course of time to charity. -
Recieving the Millennium Award
2013 - Bambi - Millennium Award -
Recieving Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award
Recieving the Lasker-Bloomberg Public Service Award -
Stepping down as Chairman
He stepped down as Chairman of Microsoft in February 2014, and currently serves as technology advisor to support CEO Satya Nadella. -
Receiving India's Third Highest Civilian Honor
Bill and Melinda Gates jointly received India's third highest civilian honor Padma Bhushan in 2015 for their foundation's philanthropic activities in India. -
Net Worth
As of 2015, Bill Gates has a net worth of US $79.3 billion
