Bill Gates and Steve Jobs, two titans of the technology world, made a significant impact on the industry during their leadership of Microsoft and Apple. While Gates’s admiration for Jobs’s charismatic personality and his ability to captivate audiences was known, a new book reveals that Gates’s admiration for the Apple founder reached the level of jealousy.
Bill Gates: “He Was a Wizard!”
The book “BILLIONAIRE, NERD, SAVIOR, KING: Bill Gates and His Quest to Shape Our World” by New York Times reporter Anupreeta Das, unveils an intriguing story from the 1997 Macworld conference in Boston.
At that time, with Apple on the brink of bankruptcy and saved by Microsoft’s $150 million investment, Gates chose not to attend the event in person but instead spoke via satellite link.
The book describes Gates’s feelings during the conference as follows:
“Gates was sitting thousands of miles away in one of Microsoft’s TV studios, watching his competitor. As he observed Jobs’s relaxed demeanor on stage, his humor, and his impressive performance, Gates was overwhelmed by both admiration and jealousy. He was heard asking his colleague, ‘How does he do that?’”
Although Gates’s ‘jealous’ admiration was not reflected in his public statements, he had kind words for Jobs even after his death. In a podcast discussing Jobs, Gates said, “Bill and I met almost 30 years ago. During that time, we were colleagues, rivals, and friends. It’s rare for the world to see someone with the deep impact of Steve. For those of us who had the chance to work with him, it was an incredible honor. I will miss Steve greatly.”
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