William Henry "Bill" Gates III,
KBE, (born October 28, 1955) is the co-founder,
chairman, and chief software architect of Microsoft Corporation, the world's
largest computer software company. According to Forbes magazine, Gates is
the world's wealthiest person, with a net worth of approximately US$51
billion, as of September 2005[3].
Gates is one of the best-known entrepreneurs of the personal computer
revolution and has become an iconic figure of late-20th century capitalism.
While widely respected for his intelligence, foresight, and ambition, he is
also sometimes accused of using ruthless, illegal or monopolistic business
practices.
Since amassing his fortune, Gates has pursued a number of philanthropic
endeavours, donating huge amounts of money to various charitable
organizations and scientific research programs through the Bill & Melinda
Gates Foundation, founded in 2000. He, along with his wife Melinda Gates and
U2's lead singer Bono, were named by Time as the 2005 Persons of the Year.
That same year he was given the honour of Knight Commander of the British
Empire by Qu