Melinda Gates

Melinda Ann French was born on August 15, 1964, in Dallas, Texas, and was raised there. She attended Ursuline Academy of Dallas and then Duke University, where she earned a bachelor’s degree in computer science and economics in 1986 and an MBA from Duke’s Fuqua School of Business in 1987. After completing graduate school, French joined Microsoft in 1987 as a product manager and developer working on multimedia and consumer products, with responsibilities that included projects such as Microsoft Publisher and other information products; she rose to General Manager of Information Products before leaving Microsoft in 1996 to focus on family and philanthropic work. While at Microsoft she met William H. 'Bill' Gates and married him in 1994; the couple had three children together. In 2000 Melinda and Bill consolidated their charitable activities to form the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which focused on global health, development, education and U.S. programs and grew into one of the world’s largest philanthropic organizations through major endowments and donations such as Warren Buffett’s gift. Melinda shaped the foundation’s priorities toward global health, women and girls’ empowerment, and education, and the organization committed tens of billions in grants worldwide during her co-chair tenure. In 2015 she launched Pivotal Ventures, an investment and incubation company focused on advancing social progress for women and families in the United States. Following her divorce from Bill Gates in 2021, the two continued as co-chairs for a trial period, but Melinda resigned as co-chair effective June 7, 2024; as part of their separation she received funds designated for her own philanthropic efforts, which she has stated will concentrate on women and families.