In 2017, just before Microsoft partnered with a then-relatively unknown startup called OpenAI, Bill Gates shared a memo with CEO Satya Nadella and a small group of the company's executives. Gates predicted that a new world order would soon be ushered in by what he called “AI agents,” digital personal assistants that can anticipate our every want and need. These agents are far more powerful than Siri or Alexa, with god-like knowledge and supernatural intuition.
“Agents not only change the way everyone interacts with computers,” Gates wrote. “They will also upend the software industry and bring about the biggest revolution in computing since we went from typing commands to tapping icons.”
Those who read the memo at the time found it far-fetched. “It seemed super futuristic,” said a Microsoft executive, who spoke on condition of anonymity. Microsoft has been widely derided for previous attempts to create personal “agents,” from its failed Office assistant Clippy to the racist chatbot Tay. At the time, few people believed that these new generations of agents would transform Microsoft.
But today it's clear that Gates' secret communications foreshadowed CoPilot, the artificial intelligence tool that helped make Microsoft the world's most valuable publicly traded company. His Copilot, which utilizes a version of his GPT large-scale language model in OpenAI, debuted last year as a tool within his Microsoft product to help users with tasks such as preparing presentations and summarizing meetings. “The co-pilot now sounds exactly like what he wrote,” the executive said.
That's no coincidence.
Gates has largely disappeared from public view at Microsoft since 2021 after being accused of inappropriate behavior toward female employees. In fact, Business Insider has learned that Gates has been secretly orchestrating much of his AI revolution at Microsoft behind the scenes. Current and former executives said Gates provided strategic advice, product reviews, senior executive recruitment and maintained Microsoft's key relationship with OpenAI co-founder and CEO Sam Altman. He continues to be closely involved in the company's operations, including nurturing them. In early 2023, when Microsoft debuted a version of its search engine Bing powered by the same technology as ChatGPT to take on competitors such as Google, executives said Gates was crucial to executing the plan. said. Mr. Nadella may have been the public face of his company's AI success, the Oz who forged the yellow brick road to the $3 trillion corporation, but Mr. Gates was the man behind the scenes.
Another Microsoft executive said, “What you're reading is not what's happening in real life.” “Mr. Sathya and his entire senior leadership team rely heavily on Mr. Gates. His input is sought whenever we make major changes.”
When Nadella took over from Steve Ballmer a decade ago, Microsoft was seen as a pioneering dinosaur of the computer age. Peter Thiel accused the company of “betting on innovation.” So Nadella, who had worked at Microsoft since 1992, turned to his former boss for help. The day Mr. Nadella became his CEO, he asked Mr. Gates to spend 30% of his time as a technical advisor to motivate his staff. “I know that if I say, 'I want Bill to run this,' they'll do their best to prepare,” he told Wired at the time.
When Gates stepped down as chairman of Microsoft's board in 2020, Nadella praised him. Nadella promised that the company “will continue to benefit from Bill's continued technical passion and advice to advance our products and services.”
But a year later, Nadella's support for Gates appeared to have changed, at least publicly. In 2021, as Gates and his wife Melinda were divorcing, the Wall Street Journal reported that Gates was forced to resign after the company investigated him for having an affair with an employee. As news of Mr. Gates' wrongdoing spread rapidly, the creaky reputation that Mr. Gates and his public relations team had meticulously built over the years came undone. Meetings with Jeffrey Epstein, including flights on Epstein's private jet, have come under new scrutiny as several female employees come forward to say Gates took them out on dates. . Suddenly, Nadella's leadership became his biggest responsibility, and he and Microsoft quickly distanced themselves from Gates.
“The Microsoft of 2021 is very different from the Microsoft of 2000,” Nadella said at the time. “Power relationships in the workplace cannot be exploited in any way.” He later said the company's biggest responsibility was “to foster a culture where everyone is empowered to do meaningful work.” added.
But Gates himself was among the people Nadella secretly empowered to do meaningful work, BI has learned. Rather than kick Gates out of the company, Nadella continued to rely on Gates' advice and expertise and became a central figure in the effort to take control of Microsoft. love.
The common narrative about the marriage between Microsoft and OpenAI is that it was brokered by Kevin Scott, the company's chief technology officer. Mr. Scott has known Mr. Altman for years and arranged a meeting between Mr. Altman and Mr. Nadella in the summer of 2018. Later that year, the three put together their first deal, and the rest was history.
Gates' memo was treated as gospel, two executives said, and served as a catalyst for Microsoft to take the lead in the AI arms race.
But what's lost in that origin story is that Gates has been meeting regularly with OpenAI since 2016. Since publishing The Road Ahead in 1995, Gates has said that everyone is a “personality you can talk to in some way” who “talks to you in much the same way that a human assistant would.” “Learn about their requirements and preferences.'' Under Gates' leadership, Microsoft created several primitive and widely derided versions of the agent, from Rover, the cartoon dog that guides Windows 95, to Clippy, the most hated clip in history. I launched it. Now, it seemed like OpenAI might offer Microsoft a way to help Gates build his AI future that he had long envisioned. After the companies formed their partnership, OpenAI leaders gave regular presentations to Gates at his 66,000-square-foot mansion in Washington, keeping him apprised of important benchmarks and critical roadblocks. I did.
In fact, it was Gates who played a pivotal role in turning OpenAI and Microsoft into a power couple. In mid-2022, two years after being ousted from the board, he privately challenged Altman and OpenAI to create a model that could pass the Advanced Placement biology exam. Gates didn't think he could do it. with altman OpenAI first debuted GPT-4 externally in August 2022 at a dinner party at Gates' home. Nadella was also among the guests. When the test passed, Gates was shocked and called it “the most amazing demonstration I've ever seen in my life.”
The demonstrations prompted Gates to write another memo, one former executive said.of “Notes” – Microsoft details how GPT-4 should be used. Gates emphasized that large-scale language models trained across the public internet could eventually usher in the era of personal agents. “Think of it as a digital personal assistant,” he wrote in a version of that memo later posted on his blog. He will read things you don't want to worry about.
Gates' words were treated as gospel and spurred Microsoft's push to take the lead in the AI arms race, two executives said. Immediately after Gates' dinner, Nadella hosted a meeting on Microsoft's campus to challenge teams to build AI into search, cybersecurity, and the Microsoft 365 suite of business applications, including Word and Outlook.
Early the following year, Microsoft announced a new version of its beleaguered search engine, Bing. This version includes enhancements to the GPT-enabled agent, later named Copilot. Thanks to Gates' maneuver, Microsoft almost overnight transformed Bing from a life-support search engine to an AI-powered tool with a chance to take on Google.
In February 2023, Microsoft held an event similar to Steve Jobs' iPhone launch at its headquarters. Nadella declared war on Google with a smile on his face. Gates does not appear to be in attendance.
Gates still maintains a close relationship with Altman, who visits his home several times a year, and OpenAI seeks his advice on development. There is a “close relationship” between Gates and OpenAI, according to a person familiar with the relationship. “Sam and Bill are good friends. OpenAI respects his opinion and consults with him seriously overall.” Kayla Wood, an OpenAI spokeswoman, said OpenAI continues to meet with Gates. Admitted.
When OpenAI's board abruptly fired Mr. Altman last fall, Mr. Nadella and Microsoft scrambled to quell the chaos. Microsoft spokesperson Frank Shaw told BI that even though Gates was speaking to Altman, he was not speaking on behalf of the company. “Bill is not at Microsoft and he has no involvement here,” Shaw told BI at the time.
During the ensuing five days of turmoil, Gates offered his support to Altman as he negotiated a return to OpenAI's leadership, given his recent dismissal.
Now, insiders say Gates' influence at Microsoft extends far beyond OpenAI.
Executives across the company, including Charles Lamanna, Head of Business Applications; Its chief scientist, Jamie Teevan. Jeff Teper, Head of Teams Chat App. Charlie Bell, head of cybersecurity, meets regularly with Gates to review products. He is also personally involved in recruiting and retaining key executives at Microsoft. “Gates is very involved in product reviews and one-on-ones with executives,” the former executive said. Last year, Gates told Forbes he spent about 10% of his time in Redmond, Washington, advising Microsoft on its product roadmap.
Gates has also long pushed Microsoft to become more consumer-focused, despite its many consumer technology failures. Many people were shocked when the company announced in March that it was hiring DeepMind co-founder and longtime Google employee Mustafa Suleiman to lead its new consumer AI organization. “Bill G. believes the main opportunity is the consumer,” one of the people said. “When you look at the new consumer AI organization, it looks like Bill's influence on Satya.” Shaw said Gates was not involved in Suleiman's hiring.
All of this is in sharp contrast to the perception that Gates has been kept at arm's length since being ousted from the board. Gates kept a low profile, but emerged from the scandal largely unscathed. Currently, his cheating allegations are not even mentioned in his Wikipedia entry. The Microsoft of 2024 is likely not as different from the Microsoft of 2021 as Nadella would have everyone believe. Gates is not gone, but his checkered past is largely forgotten.
Shaw said there have been no major changes to Gates' role as technical advisor since he retired from the board in 2020. Gates declined an interview request, and his representatives did not respond to requests for comment.
Near the end of “The Road Ahead,” Gates becomes existential. “As computer technology advances, it's a little scary that the leader of one era has never been the leader of the next,” he laments at the ripe age of 39. Ta. You are not qualified to lead in the information age highway age. ”
Gates, now middle-aged, revealed his true ambition: “I want to rebel against historical tradition.''
As he approaches 70, Gates continues to defy history, this time from behind the scenes. And if Microsoft's resurgent fortunes are any indication, he appears to be winning.
ashley stewart I'm Business Insider's chief technology correspondent. She reports from Seattle on enterprise technology companies such as Microsoft and Amazon Web Services.
Are you a Microsoft employee or someone else with insights you would like to share? Email Ashley Stewart (astewart@businessinsider.com), or send a secure message from your non-working device via Signal (+1-425-344-8242).
