---
id: "b7e1c2f7-1d01-4d26-9b32-d4c640814d12"
type: "Person"
name: "Bill Gates"
slug: "bill-gates"
canonical: "https://groundingwiki.com/en/people/bill-gates/"
markdown: "https://groundingwiki.com/en/people/bill-gates/index.md"
language: en
same_as:
  - "https://wikidata.org/wiki/Q5284"
  - "https://wikidata.org/wiki/Q2283"
---

# Bill Gates

Bill Gates is a technology entrepreneur and philanthropist who co-founded Microsoft and serves as chair and a board member of the Gates Foundation. [1]

## Core facts

- **Entity type:** Person

- **Date of birth:** 28 October 1955 — [2] independent, checked 22 Sept 2026

- **Place of birth:** Seattle — [3] structured public data, checked 22 Sept 2026

- **Nationality:** United States — [3] structured public data, checked 22 Sept 2026

- **Occupations:** Technology entrepreneur · entrepreneur, programmer, computer scientist, bridge player, investor, philanthropist, writer, business magnate, technology entrepreneur, patron of the arts, founder · Philanthropist — [1] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

- **Official profile or website:** [gatesnotes.com](https://www.gatesnotes.com/meet-bill) — [4] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

## Who is Bill Gates?

Gates co-founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975 and later shifted from day-to-day company work toward philanthropy. He currently serves as chair and a board member of the Gates Foundation. — [1] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

## History

- **berkshire:** Announced his departure from Berkshire Hathaway’s board in March 2020 — [5] independent, checked 23 Sept 2026

- **microsoft:** Co-founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1975 — [6] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

- **microsoft\_chair:** Served as Microsoft board chair until February 4, 2014 — [7] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

- **microsoft\_day\_to\_day:** Transitioned out of day-to-day Microsoft work on June 27, 2008 — [7] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

## Leadership

- **Gates Foundation:** Chair and board member — [1] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

- **Microsoft:** Stepped down from Microsoft’s board in March 2020; continued as technology advisor — [7] first-party, checked 23 Sept 2026

## Relationships

- **founded:** [Microsoft](https://groundingwiki.com/en/organizations/microsoft/index.md) — [8] structured public data, checked 22 Sept 2026

## Sources
1. [Bill Gates — Gates Foundation](https://gatesfoundation.org/about/leadership/bill-gates)
   - Publisher: Gates Foundation
   - Type: first-party
   - Checked: 23 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - Definition: "The Gates Foundation identifies Gates as its chair and board member and states that he co-founded Microsoft in 1975 with Paul Allen."
     - Occupations: "The Foundation identifies Gates as Microsoft co-founder and describes his technology work."
     - Who is Bill Gates?: "The Foundation’s profile documents Microsoft’s 1975 co-founding, his 2008 transition to full-time foundation work, and his current chair and board roles."
     - Gates Foundation: "The Foundation’s current leadership profile lists Gates as chair and board member."
2. [imdb.com](https://imdb.com/name/nm0309540/bio)
   - Publisher: imdb.com
   - Type: independent
   - Checked: 22 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - Date of birth: "IMDb biography lists Bill Gates’s birth date as October 28, 1955."
3. [Bill Gates — Wikidata](https://wikidata.org/wiki/Q5284)
   - Publisher: Wikidata
   - Type: structured public data
   - Checked: 22 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - Place of birth: "Wikidata P19 names the birth place of Bill Gates."
     - Nationality: "Wikidata P27 names the nationality of Bill Gates."
4. [Meet Bill Gates — Gates Notes](https://gatesnotes.com/meet-bill)
   - Publisher: Gates Notes
   - Type: first-party
   - Checked: 23 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - Official profile or website: "Gates Notes is Bill Gates’s personal website and profile."
5. [Bill Gates steps down from the board of directors at Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway](https://washingtonpost.com/technology/2020/03/13/bill-gates-microsoft-board)
   - Publisher: The Washington Post
   - Type: independent
   - Checked: 23 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - berkshire: "The Washington Post reported Gates would step away from his Berkshire Hathaway board position in March 2020."
6. [Microsoft is born](https://news.microsoft.com/announcement/microsoft-is-born)
   - Publisher: Microsoft Stories
   - Type: first-party
   - Checked: 23 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - microsoft: "Microsoft’s historical account says Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft to develop software for the Altair 8800."
7. [Microsoft announces change to its board of directors](https://news.microsoft.com/source/2020/03/13/microsoft-announces-change-to-its-board-of-directors)
   - Publisher: Microsoft Source
   - Type: first-party
   - Checked: 23 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - microsoft\_chair: "Microsoft says Gates served as board chair until February 4, 2014."
     - microsoft\_day\_to\_day: "Microsoft dates Gates’s transition from a day-to-day company role to June 27, 2008."
     - Microsoft: "Microsoft announced Gates’s board departure on March 13, 2020 and said he would continue as technology advisor."
8. [Microsoft — Wikidata](https://wikidata.org/wiki/Q2283)
   - Publisher: Wikidata
   - Type: structured public data
   - Checked: 22 Sept 2026
   - Evidence:
     - founded: "Wikidata P112 links Microsoft to Bill Gates."

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