Bill Gates

Updated: 08/16/2024 by Computer Hope

Name: William H. Gates

Born: October 28, 1955, in Seattle, Washington, USA

Computer-related contributions

Co-Founder and early CEO of the Microsoft company.
Helped developed Microsoft's first product, Altair BASIC for the MITS Altair that later developed into Microsoft BASIC.
Helped develop Microsoft's earlier programs such as MS-DOS.
The Bill Gates and Melinda Gates Foundation pledges $15m to the Computer History Museum on October 17, 2005.
In 1997, Bill Gates invested $150 million into Apple to help prevent it from going into bankruptcy.

Presidential Medal of Freedom (2016).
Honored with the Silver Buffalo Award by the Boy Scouts of America.
Awarded the 2010 Bower Award for Business Leadership of The Franklin Institute.
Time magazine named Bill Gates one of the most 100 people who influenced the 20th century and one of the 100th most influential people of 2004, 2005, and 2006.
Bill and his wife were awarded the Order of the Aztec Eagle for their philanthropic work in 2006.
Made honorary Knight Commander of the Order of the British Empire (KBE) by Queen Elizabeth II in 2005.
Honored as the 12th Distinguished Fellow of the British Computer Society.
Youngest self-made billionaire.
Featured on the front of TIME magazine in 1984.

"It's fine to celebrate success, but it is more important to heed the lessons of failure."

"Be nice to nerds. Chances are you'll end up working for one."

"If GM had kept up with technology like the computer industry has, we would all be driving $25 cars that got 1000 MPG."

"Measuring programming progress by lines of code is like measuring aircraft building progress by weight."

"We always overestimate the change that will occur in the next two years and underestimate the change that will occur in the next ten."

"Success is a lousy teacher. It seduces smart people into thinking they can't lose."

"I choose a lazy person to do a hard job. Because a lazy person will find an easy way to do it."