(Fortune Magazine) — Let me tell you about Bill Gates. He is
different from you and me. First off, the billionaire co-founder of
Microsoft has always been something of a utopian. In his mind, even the
world’s knottiest problems can be solved if you apply enough IQ.
Accordingly, Gates, who has been spotted on Seattle freeways reading a
book while driving himself to the office, covets knowledge. It’s as if
he’s still trying to make up for dropping out of Harvard, as he spends
just about any spare waking minute reading, studying science texts, or
watching university courses on DVD.
Some say his wealth and
famous opportunism are reminiscent of the robber barons of yore. Yet
here is a man who has set a goal to eradicate malaria. Rich as he is -
his net worth is an estimated $50 billion - you can’t call the man
greedy when he has pledged to give back to humanity all but a tiny
fraction of 1% of that fortune.
These traits only begin to
explain why Gates, at 52, has chosen to redirect his efforts toward
more altruistic pursuits. On July 1 he will step away from an operating
role at Microsoft (MSFT, Fortune 500)
to devote more time to philanthropy and other interests. The shift has
been on his mind for nearly a decade, and it reflects some important
experiences over his lifetime.
It’s too
early, of course, to judge the legacy of Bill Gates. He’s only 52. His
kids aren’t even out of elementary school. And he has only just stepped
away from Microsoft, a company that once put IBM in its place, and
which some would say is the most significant company to come along
since General Electric (GE, Fortune 500).
Nor
do we really know what - or even whether - Gates thinks of his place in
history. As outgoing Gates Foundation CEO Patty Stonesifer puts it,
“The Gateses by nature believe that the unexamined life is the one
that’s worth living. They don’t like to talk about themselves. It’s all
about rational responsibility, not grand idealism.”
Buffett,
who knows him as well as anyone, says the notoriously competitive Gates
will have to find new ways to judge his accomplishments rather than by
market share or in dollars. “He’ll be competing with his own
standards,” Buffett says. “In the end, he is going to want people to
look at the Gates Foundation 100 years from now and say, ‘This guy did
it the way it should have been done.’”
With all he did at
Microsoft, Gates has a tough act to follow. “Bringing personal
computing to billions has totally changed the world, and it’s changed
it, net-net, way for the better,” says Myhrvold. “So even before you
look at what his foundation has done for Africa or for the poor, he’s
already done more for the good of the world than essentially anyone
else in our lifetimes.”
Melinda Gates isn’t at all surprised by
Bill’s transformation from feared empire builder to enlightened
philanthropist. “I think the foundation, because it’s not all about
business and competition, allows other dimensions of Bill’s personality
to come out,” she says. “He’s incredibly funny and has an unbelievably
wry sense of humor. He also can be very emotional when he sees the
pathetic living conditions of so many people. He’s a genuinely nice
guy. I think more of what I see at home and what we see inside the
foundation will come out. That will be a really nice thing for him and
for the world.”
To which her husband would likely say, “That’s the stupidest thing I’ve ever heard in my life.”
