We’ve shared a number of pieces highlighting the wealth of remarkable achievers. However, the Bill Gates net worth will knock them all of out the park.

While this computing maverick has reached legendary business status, the facts of his life are as gripping as fiction.

Born in Seattle in 1955, William Henry Gates III cofounded Microsoft, a globally recognised software and electronics conglomerate.

However, Gates had shown an aptitude for coding as far back as the tender age of 13.

Lakeside school was one of the few high schools in America that had a computer. However, young Bill took advantage of the resources available to him.

Bill Gates net worth - Compelo
Flickr/OnInnovation

Bill Gates net worth: Inspired by gaming?

Using basic programming, he set up his first game, Tic-Tac-Toe.

Little did he know that this game would help shape the course of his remarkable life.

Some sources even report that Gates hacked into his school’s scheduling system during his high school career.

However, Gates claims to have created the programme himself. Supposedly, he also added  a feature that placed him in predominately female classes.

After leaving high school, Gates attended Harvard University with Lakeside partner in crime, Paul Allen. There, the young developer’s passion for coding grew to the point of eclipsing his course work.

In fact, Gates’s ambition pushed him to set a trend that popular tech entrepreneurs continue to follow today.

He dropped out of Harvard in 1975 to devote himself full time to what would become the largest software producer in the world.

Thus, with Lakeside pal come business partner, Gates founded Microsoft with Paul Allen in 1976.

Bill Gates net worth - Compelo
Paul Allan – Credit: Mike Harris

However, the future billionaire also had an unruly streak.

After dropping out of Harvard, Gates ran a red light in New Mexico, while also driving without a license.

Thankfully, the rebel found a cause as a driven entrepreneur.

Microsoft fundamentally dominated the market for operating systems in the 1980’s.

The PC boom during this time saw competition between different hardware manufactures. Therefore, Microsoft was able to position itself as the only source for operating systems.

Bill Gates net worth - Compelo
Gates’s 1977 mugshot from his New Mexico forays

Microsoft turns millionaires into billionaires

While the tech industry today is populated with other operating system providers, Microsoft is undoubtedly an unyielding supplier.

Furthermore, Microsoft shared its initial version of Windows in 1990. The program continues to experience diversified growth, even in the fact of computing behemoths such as Apple and Google.

Thus, Gates’s contributions to the software and electrical industries have boosted his finances to shocking levels.

The disruptive breakthroughs from his early career have paid off so generously, that he is now one of the richest men in the world.

Indeed, business intelligence platforms such as Forbes rank him as the wealthiest individual on the planet.

With a net worth of a cool $87b, Gates is also a dedicated philanthropist.

Set up in 2000, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation is the largest privately owned charity in the world.

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