Bill Gates was a person.
Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation ( or the Gates Foundation , abbreviated as BMGF ) is a private foundation founded by Bill and Melinda Gates . Bill Gates . In 1975 , Gates and Paul Allen co-founded Microsoft , which became the world 's largest PC software company . Gates stepped down as chief executive officer of Microsoft in January 2000 , but he remained as chairman and created the position of chief software architect for himself . Gates is one of the best-known entrepreneurs of the personal computer revolution .