Bill Gates, the co-founder of Microsoft, has announced that he intends to donate 99 percent of his fortune within the next 20 years. He stated that he would increase his philanthropic giving through his foundation and that the Gates Foundation will wind down its operations by the year 2045.
In a blog post published last Thursday, the billionaire philanthropist wrote, “When I die, people will have a lot to say. But I want to ensure that none of them can say, ‘He died a rich man.’”
The 69-year-old Gates said his foundation has already spent $100 billion on health and development projects. He hopes the foundation will spend an additional $200 billion in the next two decades, though he acknowledged that this amount may vary depending on market conditions and inflation.
In his blog, Bill Gates referenced Andrew Carnegie’s 1889 essay The Gospel of Wealth, which argues that the wealthy have a moral responsibility to return their fortunes to society. Gates quoted Carnegie’s famous line: “The man who dies rich dies disgraced.”
Gates’s new pledge marks a significant acceleration in his charitable endeavors. He and his former wife, Melinda, had previously intended for the foundation to operate for many decades after their deaths.
Asked about this shift in an interview on BBC’s NewsHour, Gates said, “Twenty years from now, there will be other wealthy individuals better suited to face the challenges of the future.”
The Microsoft co-founder explained, “This is an emergency. If we don’t plan for perpetuity, we can spend more now. And I know that this kind of spending aligns with my values.”
According to Bloomberg, even after giving away 99 percent of his wealth, Gates will still retain billions of dollars. He currently ranks as the fifth-richest person in the world.
Gates’s blog post included a timeline depicting his current net worth—$108 billion—and a downward arrow pointing toward near-zero by 2045. He emphasized that the foundation will draw down $200 billion from its core endowment.
Gates and Paul Allen co-founded Microsoft in 1975. The company went on to dominate the computer software and broader technology industries. Over time, Gates gradually stepped back from Microsoft’s operations, resigning as CEO in 2000 and stepping down as chairman in 2014.
Gates credited fellow investor and philanthropist Warren Buffett, among others, as an inspiration for his giving. Still, the Gates Foundation has not been without criticism. Some detractors claim the foundation is used as a vehicle for tax avoidance or that it exerts undue influence over global health initiatives.
In his blog, Bill Gates outlined three main goals for the foundation: saving mothers and children from preventable diseases, eradicating infectious diseases such as malaria and measles, and lifting millions out of poverty.
Bill Gates also criticized the United States, the United Kingdom, and France for cutting foreign aid, writing, “It is unclear whether the world’s wealthiest nations will continue to stand by the poorest people. But we can say this with certainty: the Gates Foundation will support efforts to help people and countries escape poverty.”
Gates’s remarks about billionaire Elon Musk also resurfaced during his NewsHour interview. Gates had previously blamed Musk for influencing U.S. government aid cuts through the Department of Global Engagement (DGE), which he warned could lead to preventable child deaths.
Elaborating on that point, Gates stated, “These cuts won’t just claim the lives of a few children. They could cost the lives of millions. Surely, you don’t want the richest man in the world to be responsible for that.”
In an interview with The Financial Times, Bill Gates questioned the withdrawal of funding from a hospital in Mozambique’s Gaza Province. Former U.S. President Donald Trump had falsely claimed that such funds were being used to buy condoms for Hamas in Gaza.
Elon Musk later acknowledged that this claim was incorrect but said spending cuts would nonetheless continue. Gates responded, “I’d like Elon Musk to visit those children who are now contracting HIV because of his funding cuts.” The BBC reached out to Musk for comment, but no response was received.
Wealth of Bill gates
Bill Gates’s wealth is primarily managed through Cascade Investment, a holding company funded by proceeds from Microsoft stock sales and dividends.
Bloomberg’s analysis shows that Bill Gates has earned more than $60 billion from Microsoft and other investments, including a $3.3 billion Microsoft dividend in 2004, which he donated to his foundation.
Cascade Investment’s value is determined by the buying and selling of assets, tax payments, and market performance.
These evaluations consider hedge funds, bonds, equities, private businesses such as real estate and energy assets, and stakes in numerous publicly traded companies. The valuation of public shares is based on the number of shares disclosed.
As of now, Bill Gates retains roughly a 1 percent stake in Microsoft, which remains the world’s largest software company. He stepped down from Microsoft’s board of directors in March 2020.
The current size of his Microsoft holdings has not been publicly disclosed since. Any Microsoft shares held by the Gates Foundation are excluded from his net worth calculations. The foundation continues its work in poverty alleviation, medical research, and education reform.
In 2021, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates announced their divorce. According to corporate filings, over $5 billion in shares were transferred to Melinda Gates, a figure not included in Bloomberg’s analysis.
In July 2022, Gates pledged to donate $20 billion to the Gates Foundation, including $15 billion already committed. Corporate disclosures show that at least $18.7 billion in shares were transferred during that quarter. An additional $1.3 billion liability remains outstanding, according to the same data.
Bridget Arnold, a spokesperson for Bill Gates, declined to comment on his net worth.
Bill Gates was born into an accomplished family. His father was a lawyer, and his mother served as president of the local United Way chapter. Gates discovered his passion for computers after enrolling at Lakeside School in Seattle.
He scored 1590 out of 1600 on the SAT and enrolled at Harvard University. There, his school friend Paul Allen convinced him to take a leave of absence to develop an operating system for the Altair 8800 computer, built by Micro Instrumentation and Telemetry Systems (MITS). That effort gave birth to Microsoft.
In 1994, Gates married Melinda French, a Microsoft employee whom he first met seven years earlier at a press event in New York. Six years later, after his Microsoft shares exceeded a value of $100 billion, Gates stepped down as CEO to devote himself to philanthropy full-time through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
He has publicly committed to giving away most of his wealth—a pledge he reaffirmed in 2010 when he signed the Giving Pledge. In November 2016, President Barack Obama awarded him the Presidential Medal of Freedom.
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