Microsoft’s Gates Exits Board, Capping Years of Radical Change
The philanthropist leaves his last major role at the software maker he co-founded in 1975
It’s truly the end of the old Microsoft Corp.
Late on Friday, co-founder and original Chief Executive Officer Bill Gates, the man most closely identified with the world’s largest software maker, said he will leave the company’s board to devote more time to his charitable foundation, which is is playing a key role in global health initiatives and expanding into new areas like climate change. Gates will remain as a technical adviser to the company, helping to guide CEO Satya Nadella and senior leadership on issues like the future of productivity software, health-care technology and artificial intelligence.
“I think it just says, ‘We’ve turned the page, we have completed our transition,’” said Merv Adrian, a vice president at research firm Gartner Inc., who has followed Microsoft closely for decades. “This feels like a graceful transition over several years. Now they feel that their work is done, and it’s time to go on.”