Bill Gates has opened up about his "miserable" divorce from Melinda French Gates, which he admits was one of his biggest regrets.
The former Microsoft executive, 69, spoke candidly about splitting from his wife of 27 years during an interview with The Times of London on Saturday while also offering a glimpse into the family dynamics he grew up in. Gates shared that one of his greatest goals was to replicate his own parents' 45-year marriage.
"I encouraged Melinda to be a little calmer than my mother was, but we were both quite driven," he told the outlet, according to People. "I spent more time with the kids than my dad did, but the ratio was still 10:1, with Melinda doing most things for the kids. We had a great time."
There is a "certain wonderfulness to spending your entire adult life with one person," Bill said, especially when you share children and projects.
"When Melinda and I met, I was fairly successful but not ridiculously successful — that came during the time that we were together," he told The Times of London. "So, she saw me through a lot. When we got divorced, it was tough, and then she made the decision to leave the foundation — I was disappointed that she took the option to go off."
In 1987, Melinda joined Microsoft as a product manager, which is where she first connected with Bill. They soon developed a romantic relationship and were married in Hawaii in 1994.
Years later, in 2000, they launched the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, a global nonprofit focusing on poverty reduction and public health initiatives. Following their divorce, Melinda, now 60, officially departed from the foundation in May 2024.
Asked if divorce was his only failure in life, Bill replied, "You would have to put that at the top of the list. There are others but none that matter."
"The divorce thing was miserable for me and Melinda for at least two years," he continued.
Elsewhere, Gates shared that he has become "more cheerful" in the years following their split but still considers it to be "the mistake I most regret."
"Melinda and I still see each other — we have three kids and two grandchildren, so there are family events," he said. "The kids are doing well. They have good values."
The couple share three children together: Rory, 25, Phoebe, 22, and Jennifer, 28. They are also grandparents to Jennifer's two daughters, Leila and Mia. Bill is now dating Paula Hurd, the widow of Mark Hurd, a former executive at Oracle.
Melinda previously spoke about the divorce from Bill, telling Time last year it was "hard" and "painful" but also presented "wonderful" new opportunities.
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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