BILL GATES - Who is he? can you tell anything about him? For other persons named Bill Gates, see Bill Gates (disambiguation). William Henry Gates III (born October 28, 1955 in Seattle, Washington) is an American entreprenuer and the co-founder, chairman, former chief software architect, and former chief executive officer of Microsoft, the world's leading software company. Forbes magazine's The World's Billionaires list has ranked him as the richest person on earth for the last thirteen consecutive years, with a current net worth of approximately $53 billion. When family wealth is considered, his family ranks second behind the Walton family.[3][4] Gates is one of the best-known entrepreneurs of the personal computer revolution. He is widely respected for his foresight and ambition.[5][6] He is also frequently criticized as having built Microsoft through unfair or unlawful business practices. Since amassing his fortune, Gates has pursued a number of philanthropic endeavors, donating large amounts of money to various charitable organizations and scientific research programs through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, founded in 2000. Related story: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bill_Gates