When Bill Gates stepped down from Microsoft’s board in 2020, it seemed to be the end of the entrepreneur’s almost four decades at the tech giant he co-founded in 1975. Though on his Gates Notes blog, he states he is still a “technical advisor,” it wasn’t clear how much time he was actually spending at the company.
Gates spent 25 years as CEO and transitioned into a part-time role at Microsoft in June 2008. And despite officially stepping down in 2020, it looks like Gates never actually retired.
In a new interview with the Wall Street Journal, Gates said that he is still doing “product reviews” at Microsoft, and it takes up “maybe 15%” of the 69-year-old’s time.
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Gates also said that he and current Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella still have a “very close relationship.”
“I love doing product reviews, and he brings me in to do that,” Gates said. “It’s maybe 15% of my time. It helps me stay up-to-date.”
Microsoft Co-founders Bill Gates and Paul Allen pose for a portrait in 1984 in Seattle, Washington. (Photo by © Doug Wilson/CORBIS/Corbis via Getty Images)
This is a departure from April 2024, when Business Insider reported that Bill Gates was working behind the scenes at Microsoft, and a company spokesperson told the outlet, “Bill is not at Microsoft and not involved here.”
So, it doesn’t look like Gates will be fully retired anytime soon.
As his blog says: “I have a front seat view to all the amazing work the company continues to do in my current role as a technology advisor, and I can’t wait to see what’s next.”
Related: Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella Says the Company Needs a ‘Culture Change’ After Security Failures