| |
They had very different circ*mstances:Bill Gates was the son of wealthy parents, his father was a partner in the law firm Preston Gates & Ellis, his mother was on board of directors for First Interstate BancSystem and the United Way. Bill got a sweetheart deal from IBM, in part due to his mother serving on the United Way board with Jon Opel, chair of IBM. Steve Jobs was adopted by Paul Jobs, a mechanic and a carpenter, and Clara Jobs, who was a payroll clerk for Varian Associates. Neither of his adoptive parents had the opportunity to attend college. Jobs sold his minivan and Wozniak sold his HP scientific calculator to initially fund development of the Apple I. If you have the option of being born to parents with extreme wealth and connections, I highly recommend it over fundraising. |  | |
One may dismiss Gate's success as due to the resources of his parents. However, Microsoft was not his first foray into entrepreneurship. I suspect that bootstrapping was always the plan. Just as Apple always anticipated taking venture capital.Jobs had the good fortune to be raised in Silicon Valley. Had he been in Topeka, there would not have been a viable market of hobbyists for Apple I kits. Then again, he wouldn't have known Wozniak who actually built the damn thing, either. Luck played a factor in the fortunes of both men. The funding of Gates and Jobs is a parable. The extended version includes the prodigal son's return. | | | |
I don't completely disagree with you, a good start in life and tons of money doesn't guarantee you future success, but luck alone doesn't pay the bills either, that takes money.You can have a great viable market and if you don't have the money to build the widgets, you are stuck pounding sand. BTW if Wozniak hadn't met Steve Jobs, he might have spent the rest of his days working at HP, being one of hundreds of brilliant engineers nobody has ever heard about. Woz is many things, but he is not --and was never-- an ambitious corporate leader. Wozniak built the Apple I and Apple II but it was Steve Jobs that built Apple Inc. | | | |
As for Gates, I would never dismiss him.He took advantage of his connections and built one of the biggest, most influential software companies ever. He then stepped back at the height of his career, listened to his wife, and the two of them built a very innovative philanthropic organization. There are plenty of rich kids that don't accomplish anything, Gates wasn't one of them. | | | |
"There are plenty of rich kids that don't accomplish anything, Gates wasn't one of them."Very true! | | | |
Nobody is "dismissing Gates' success as due to the resources of his parents." People are pointing out that taking VC funding was unnecessary for Gates due to his family's wealth. Surely you can see this.Also, Gates was building a software company and Jobs was building a hardware company. Jobs had a lot more need for funding in the first place since his capital expenditures were higher. Finally, Mr. Jobs made almost half a billion off of Apple in the 1980s (yes... 1980s dollars.) I hardly think that Apple is some kind of parable about how VC funding is a bad idea. Quite the contrary. | | | FAQs
Gates did not start Microsoft with a loan from his parents, it was entirely bootstrapped financially. Paul Allen and Gates had saved up a small amount of money from contract work. Together they provided all of Microsoft's seed capital.
What kind of childhood did Bill Gates have? ›
Early Life
Known as Trey to his family, Bill was a bright and competitive child who loved math and reading. At age 8, he began reading encyclopedias for fun. But in grade school, he was bored. His parents decided to send him to Lakeside, a private middle and high school.
Was Bill Gates adopted? ›
Bill Gates was not adopted. He and his two sisters were born into a prominent, wealthy, powerful Seattle, WA, family. His father was a well-known attorney and his mother was a highly respected businesswoman and community leader.
What did Bill Gates say about his wealth? ›
“I have more than enough money for my own consumption,” said Gates. “I'm getting myself to go down the list, and I'll be proud when I fall off altogether.” Gates is currently listed as the fourth-wealthiest individual in the world with a net worth of $141 billion, according to Bloomberg's Billionaire Index.
How did Bill Gates get all that money? ›
Bill Gates is a millionaire thousands of times over: As of early May 2023, Forbes reported his net worth at over $126.8 billion, most of which came from his position as the largest individual shareholder of Microsoft, which he started with Paul Allen in 1975.
Did Zuckerberg grow up wealthy? ›
Yes, Mark Zuckerberg was not born into a wealthy family. He was born on May 14, 1984, in New York, and grew up in a middle-class family [1]. His parents are Karen, a psychiatrist, and Edward, a dentist [2]. Mark Zuckerberg is the co-founder and CEO of Facebook, one of the world's largest social media networks.
What syndrome does Bill Gates have? ›
Gates has also been diagnosed with Asperger's syndrome, which is considered to be on the autism spectrum. This diagnosis is based on his speech patterns and behavior, as well as his difficulty understanding social cues.
What is Bill Gates family history? ›
His father was a prominent lawyer, and his mother served on the board of directors of First Interstate BancSystem and United Way of America. Gates's maternal grandfather was J. W. Maxwell, a national bank president. He also has an older sister Kristi (Kristianne) and a younger sister Libby.
How many biological children does Bill Gates have? ›
Meet Bill Gates' kids Jennifer, Rory, and Phoebe: From a pediatrician to a fashion startup cofounder. Bill Gates, the Microsoft cofounder, shares three kids with his ex-wife Melinda French Gates. They include a recent med school graduate and a fashion startup cofounder.
What is Bill Gates' IQ? ›
Bill Gates's IQ is 157 ± 6, according to our mathematical analysis based on SAT score averages. With a correlation coefficient of 0.8 between SAT scores and IQ, this approach provides a trustworthy approximation.
Mary Maxwell Gates (1929–1994) was a leader who promoted voluntary service and philanthropy both locally and nationally. A member of the UW Board of Regents from 1975-1993, Mrs.
Where does Bill Gates' daughter live? ›
Bill listed his daughter's New York City apartment for $4.75 million in December 2022, following her baby news. Jennifer and her husband, Nayel, have since moved into a $51 million Manhattan penthouse. The Tribeca home was purchased last month by a Seattle-based trust linked to her father, the New York Post reported.
What did Elon say about Bill Gates? ›
Musk then famously tweeted a photo of Gates in a golf shirt with a bulging belly that made him look pregnant and mocked his appearance. “At this point, I am convinced he is categorically insane (and an a–hole to the core),” Musk texted Isaacson after the exchange with Gates. “I did actually want to like him (sigh).”
Will Bill Gates' children inherit? ›
Bill Gates and his wife Melinda ended their 27-year-old marriage in 2021. The couple have two daughters, Jennifer Catherine Gates (26) and Phoebe Adele Gates (20), and one son Rory John Gates (23). Despite being born to a billionaire father, the three Gates children will not be inheriting the billions of Bill.
How old was Bill Gates when he became a billionaire? ›
When Bill Gates became a billionaire in 1987 at 31, he was the youngest person to ever join the three comma club. In 2008, Mark Zuckerberg took that title when he reached billionaire status at 23.
What did Bill Gates' mother do? ›
Mary Maxwell Gates (1929–1994) was a leader who promoted voluntary service and philanthropy both locally and nationally. A member of the UW Board of Regents from 1975-1993, Mrs.
Was Bill Gates' father a lawyer? ›
William Henry Gates II (November 30, 1925 – September 14, 2020), better known as Bill Gates Sr., was an American attorney, philanthropist, and civic leader.
Do most entrepreneurs come from rich families? ›
A paper from economists Ross Levine and Yona Rubinstein found that entrepreneurs “tend to be male, white, better-educated, and more likely to come from high-earning, two-parent families.”
What influenced Bill Gates? ›
Obsessively dedicated to computing and software since his student days, Bill Gates became galvanized by the advent of an early personal computer, the Altair, which appeared in 1975.
