Microsoft announced that its founder, Bill Gates, left his board of directors as of Friday, and stepped down from his position on Berksh...
Microsoft announced that its founder, Bill Gates, left his board of directors as of Friday, and stepped down from his position on Berkshire Hathaway.
"I made the decision to step down from all the public councils in which I work - Microsoft and Berkshire Hathaway - to devote more time to charitable priorities, including global health, development and education, and my growing engagement in addressing climate change," Gates said in his account on LinkedIn.
"The leadership in Berkshire and Microsoft is stronger than ever, so it is time to take this step," he added.
"For Microsoft, stepping down from the boardroom does not in any way mean moving away from the company; Microsoft will always remain an important part of my life's work, and I will continue to engage with Satya (Satya Nadela, the current Microsoft CEO) and technical leadership to help shape the vision and achieve the company's ambitious goals I feel more optimistic than ever about the company's progress, and how it can continue to benefit the world. "
Gates co-founded Microsoft in 1975 with Paul Allen, who died in 2018, and was CEO until 2000 when Steve Ballmer took over.
Gates remained director of Microsoft until 2014, but he has devoted more of his time to the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation since 2008.
Gates is a major shareholder in Microsoft, according to FactSet, which holds 1.36% of the company’s shares, which is currently valued at about $ 1.21 trillion.
"It has been a tremendous honor and privilege to work with Bell and learn from him over the years," said Microsoft's current CEO, Satya Nadella.
"Bell founded our company with faith in the power of software democratization and a passion for solving the most pressing challenges in society. The Council has benefited from Bill's leadership and vision, and Microsoft will continue to leverage Bill's ongoing technical passion and advice to drive our products and services forward. I am grateful for Bill's friendship, and I look forward to continuing working alongside him to fulfill our mission to enable every person and every organization on the planet to do more. "
