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Jordan News
5 days ago
- Business
- Jordan News
Bill Gates: A Symbol of Innovation, Ambition, and Transformational Impact - Jordan News
In a world increasingly dominated by technology, the name Bill Gates, co-founder of Microsoft, remains a symbol of innovation, ambition, and transformational influence. اضافة اعلان Decades ago, the story began with a company that would go on to reshape the world through software—and behind that story stood a young visionary whose ideas radically transformed our daily lives. Born in Seattle, Washington, in 1955, William Henry "Bill" Gates showed an early fascination with computers and an exceptional talent for programming, often spending countless hours writing code on primitive machines. Today, Gates is recognized as one of the most influential and pioneering figures in modern technology. The Rise of Microsoft In the 1970s—when personal computers were still a distant dream for most—Gates and his childhood friend Paul Allen saw the immense potential in software. In 1975, the two passionate young men founded a company called Microsoft in New Mexico. A turning point came in 1980 when Microsoft struck a deal with IBM to supply the operating system for its first personal computer (IBM PC). At the time, Microsoft didn't own an operating system—but Gates successfully acquired the rights to 86-DOS (which later became MS-DOS) and adapted it to IBM's specifications. This bold move sparked the personal computer revolution and positioned Microsoft at the forefront of the tech world. A Legacy of Innovation Microsoft's momentum continued to accelerate. In 1985, the company launched the first version of Windows, a user-friendly graphical interface that made personal computers accessible to millions. This was followed by the release of the Microsoft Office suite in 1989, which became the gold standard for office productivity thanks to tools like Word, Excel, and PowerPoint. Under Gates' leadership, Microsoft grew into one of the world's largest and most influential corporations, dominating the markets for operating systems and productivity software. Challenges and Transformation The road wasn't without obstacles. Microsoft faced antitrust lawsuits and accusations of monopolistic practices. However, Gates' vision and adaptability helped him navigate these challenges. In 2000, Gates stepped down as CEO of Microsoft and assumed the role of Chief Software Architect. By 2008, he had fully stepped back from day-to-day operations to focus on philanthropy through the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, which he co-founded with his former wife Melinda French Gates. The foundation focuses on pressing global issues such as public health, poverty alleviation, and education. Enduring Global Impact Gates' influence on the tech industry and the global economy remains undeniable. Through his ambitious vision, he didn't just build a leading company—he helped shape the digital world we live in today, leaving behind a legacy of both innovation and humanitarian impact. He eventually resigned from Microsoft's board in 2020, continuing to distance himself from formal corporate roles. Today, he dedicates most of his time to writing, addressing global challenges like climate change and public health, all while maintaining a public image marked by quiet intelligence and a deep desire to "make the world better." Net Worth As of July 2025, Bill Gates' net worth is estimated at $129 billion, according to Bloomberg Billionaires Index, placing him among the top 10 wealthiest people in the world. His wealth has declined somewhat in recent years due to stepping away from executive roles at Microsoft and his massive charitable donations. Gates has pledged to give away the majority of his fortune as part of the "Giving Pledge" initiative he co-launched with Warren Buffett. Nonetheless, Gates' investments remain diverse, including significant holdings through Cascade Investment, a firm managing assets in sectors such as energy, real estate, hospitality, and railroads. From tech pioneer to global philanthropist, Bill Gates continues to inspire generations with a life shaped by vision, resilience, and purpose.
Time of India
25-04-2025
- Entertainment
- Time of India
Microsoft founder Bill Gates once stayed up all night to build a game called ‘Donkey' that former Apple employee called ‘most embarrassing'
Microsoft founder and former CEO Bill Gates once developed a video game in a single night, Called , it was a simple 8-bit racing game where players maneuvered a vehicle to avoid donkeys. During a 2001 keynote, Gates shared that he along with Neil Konzen, a programmer at Microsoft stayed up until 4am to build the reason? A 26-year-old Gates then wanted to impress IBM and secure a deal with the company. But it did not have an operating system. With Gates wanted to prove that his software could be powerful and versatile enough for the IBM platform. Although the game failed to impress IBM, it helped Gates gain IBM partnership, it went on to establish Microsoft in the tech world. How Microsoft founder Bill Gates described Speaking during a 2001 keynote, Gates said: 'Actually, it was myself and Neil Konzen at four in the morning with this prototype IBM PC sitting in this small room. IBM insisted that we had to have a lock on the door and we only had this closet that had a lock on it, so we had to do all our development in there and it was always over 100 degrees, but we wrote late at night a little application to show what the Basic built into the IBM PC could do. And so that was It was at the time very thrilling.' The story of does not end here. Andy Hertzfeld, a former Apple employee once recalled the first time Macintosh team saw an IBM PC and singled out as the 'most embarrassing game' on the IBM PC." What Apple's Andy Hertzfeld said about game Hertzfeld wrote: 'The most embarrassing game was a lo-res graphics driving game called 'Donkey'. The player was supposed to be driving a car down a slowly scrolling, poorly rendered 'road', and could hit the space bar to toggle the jerky motion. Every once in a while, a brown blob would fill the screen, which was supposed to be a donkey manifesting in the middle of the road. If you didn't hit the space bar in time, you would crash into the donkey and lose the game. We thought the concept of the game was as bad the crude graphics that it used. Since the game was written in BASIC, you could list it out and see how it was written. We were surprised to see that the comments at the top of the game proudly proclaimed the authors: Bill Gates and Neil Konzen. Neil was a bright teenage hacker who I knew from his work on the Apple II (who would later become Microsoft's technical lead on the Mac project) but we were amazed that such a thoroughly bad game could be co-authored by Microsoft's co-founder, and that he would actually want to take credit for it in the comments.'
Yahoo
17-03-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Are We Witnessing Alphabet Transform Into the Old IBM?
Alphabet (NASDAQ: GOOG) (NASDAQ: GOOGL) is often considered a reliable blue chip tech stock. It owns Google, the world's most widely used search engine; Android, the largest mobile operating system; Chrome, which dominates the web browser market; and YouTube, the top streaming video platform with over 2.7 billion monthly active users. It also provides a broad range of market-leading cloud-based productivity and infrastructure services. Over the past decade, Alphabet's stock rallied nearly 480% as its digital advertising and cloud businesses expanded. From 2014 to 2024, its revenue grew at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 18% as its EPS increased at a CAGR of 23%. But today, Alphabet's core advertising business, which generated 76% of its revenue in 2024, faces three existential challenges. First, generative artificial (AI) platforms like OpenAI's ChatGPT are changing how people search for information. Second, short video platforms like ByteDance's TikTok and Meta Platforms' Reels are pulling advertisers and viewers away from YouTube's longer-format videos. Lastly, U.S. antitrust regulators are pressing Alphabet to sell Chrome or Android. Some investors might be wondering if Alphabet is doomed to become the next IBM, which lost the PC and enterprise software markets to its nimbler competitors over the past four decades. But is that a fair comparison, or is it just a bearish hyperbole which overlooks the actual differences between Alphabet and IBM? IBM dominated the personal computing market in the 1980s and early 1990s, but it didn't actually own the IP to any of the off-the-shelf components in its PCs. As a result, other PC makers produced cheaper "IBM PC clones" with the same hardware. IBM tried to differentiate itself from those clones with its own operating system, OS/2, but that effort flopped as Microsoft Windows became the dominant OS for IBM PC clones. Those failures forced IBM to back away from the PC market, and it eventually sold its ThinkPad PC business to Lenovo in 2005. It also sold its server business to Lenovo in 2014. That retreat shows how a company's core growth engine can wither if its moat dries up and it fails to keep up with its nimbler competitors. By the late 2000s and early 2010s, IBM was struggling to expand its aging enterprise software and IT services divisions against cloud-based competitors like Microsoft and Amazon, and Google. But instead of aggressively investing in new cloud services and transforming its on-premise software and services into cloud-based ones, IBM focused on divesting its weaker units, cutting costs, and buying back more shares to boost its EPS. By the time IBM tried to expand its cloud business by acquiring SoftLayer in 2013, it had already far fallen behind Microsoft, Amazon, and Google. Its fortunes didn't improve until 2020, when its cloud chief Arvind Krishna took the helm as its new CEO, divested its struggling infrastructure services business, and leveraged its acquisition of RedHat (in 2019) to expand its higher-growth hybrid cloud and AI businesses. The bears expect Alphabet to face the same fate as IBM as generative AI platforms intercept more search queries and reduce the effectiveness of its search engine and targeted ads. Google is trying to catch up with its own generative AI platform, Gemini, but it could still end up as the OS/2 of the AI market if it falls behind ChatGPT and Microsoft's Copilot. Moreover, Android is still an open-source OS which can be modified by anyone. That makes it easy for companies like Amazon to launch their own forked versions of Android (Fire OS) and build their own app-driven ecosystems. Google's cloud platform business is still growing, but it ranks a distant third in the cloud race behind Amazon Web Services (AWS) and Microsoft Azure. Meanwhile, YouTube -- which drives a lot of its advertising growth -- doesn't have a meaningful moat against TikTok or Reels. Its top creators can easily cross-post their content to those rival platforms, and they'll likely shuffle toward the one which gives them the biggest cut of their ad revenues. YouTube is trying to offset that pressure by expanding its subscriptions business, but that strategic shift strongly suggests the growth of its advertising business will cool off over the next few years. The U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) could further erode Google's defenses by forcing it to sell Chrome, which gathers data from its users for its core advertising business; and Android, which locks 2.5 billion users into its Google-powered apps. Like the old IBM, Alphabet is trying to offset that pressure by pruning its workforce, cutting costs, and buying back 11% of its shares over the past five years. However, its future could remain murky if it fails to keep pace with the shift toward AI services. It's tempting to dismiss Alphabet as the next IBM, but it's still growing a lot faster than Big Blue. Its expansion efforts have been undeniably clumsy, but they could still bear fruit over the next few years. I'd keep a close eye on its recent challenges, but I wouldn't rule out a surprising comeback once it finally gets its act together. Ever feel like you missed the boat in buying the most successful stocks? Then you'll want to hear this. On rare occasions, our expert team of analysts issues a 'Double Down' stock recommendation for companies that they think are about to pop. If you're worried you've already missed your chance to invest, now is the best time to buy before it's too late. And the numbers speak for themselves: Nvidia: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2009, you'd have $315,521!* Apple: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2008, you'd have $40,476!* Netflix: if you invested $1,000 when we doubled down in 2004, you'd have $495,070!* Right now, we're issuing 'Double Down' alerts for three incredible companies, and there may not be another chance like this anytime soon.*Stock Advisor returns as of March 17, 2025 John Mackey, former CEO of Whole Foods Market, an Amazon subsidiary, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Randi Zuckerberg, a former director of market development and spokeswoman for Facebook and sister to Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Suzanne Frey, an executive at Alphabet, is a member of The Motley Fool's board of directors. Leo Sun has positions in Amazon and Meta Platforms. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Alphabet, Amazon, International Business Machines, Meta Platforms, and Microsoft. The Motley Fool recommends the following options: long January 2026 $395 calls on Microsoft and short January 2026 $405 calls on Microsoft. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy. Are We Witnessing Alphabet Transform Into the Old IBM? was originally published by The Motley Fool Sign in to access your portfolio
The Guardian
11-03-2025
- Business
- The Guardian
AI is transforming the art of the possible
AI has forever redefined the rate of innovation Did you know it took Heny Ford 17 years to turn his initial automotive design into the Model T – 'the car that put America on wheels'? Microsoft was founded in 1975, yet, the resulting IBM PC – the first major step towards making personal computers accessible for all – wasn't launched until 1981. Microsoft founder Bill Gates once famously said: 'Most people overestimate what they can do in one year and underestimate what they can do in 10 years.' In today's era of AI, the time has come for us to rethink this maxim. Because now what's achievable in six, 12 or 18 months has changed forever. As Francesca Colenso, Director of the Azure Business Group for Microsoft UK, says: 'AI development is accelerating at a breathtaking pace. There are a few reasons for this. 'Greater interest in the field has driven an increase in funding, which, in turn, is fuelling innovation. While the compute that powers AI systems continue to double every six months or so, we're seeing an influx of new patent filings and the time between new GPT and Copilot iterations is getting shorter and shorter. To put it simply, AI has forever redefined our understanding of innovation and how long progress takes.' Taking an idea from conception to production can now happen faster than ever, accelerating innovation timelines and transforming the art of the possible. Innovation moves faster than you think Nationwide boosts customer service with data and AI The world's largest building society, serving around 17 million customers with more than 600 branches in the UK, has expanded its use of generative AI to deliver even better experiences for customers and colleagues. By using GPT-4 within Azure OpenAI to help generate letters, average response times have dropped from 45 minutes to 10-15 minutes – an efficiency improvement of around 66%. This use of generative AI to support back-office operations has enabled Nationwide to deal with customer queries faster, while colleagues are freed up to focus on serving more customers with potentially more complex issues. Pets at Home stops fraudsters with AI agents Part of the beauty of AI lies in its ability to help navigate complexity, as the UK's largest pet care company Pets at Home has recently discovered. Copilot Studio has enabled Pets at Home to streamline huge amounts of data with an AI-powered agent for their retail fraud team. The agent helps identify anomalies and patterns of behaviour that point to suspicious activity, such as improper returns or coupon abuse. These are common issues for large retailers, and manually processing data to spot patterns can be time intensive. 'The ability to bring in artificial intelligence and agents to work alongside our colleagues, gives them quicker insights and ways to be more efficient. We're also finding it helps improve our overall consumer service, with colleagues able to spend more time interacting with people,' says Simon Ellis, the head of AI transformation and enterprise architecture at Pets at Home. Pets at Home. Photograph: Jonathan Banks for Microsoft Copilot Studio's ability to rapidly sift through large volumes of data has proved invaluable in spotting and stopping fraudsters, while protecting Pets at Home's loyal customers. A&O Shearman disrupts the legal sector Multinational law firm A&O Shearman was an early adopter of generative AI, having started trialling the technology in 2022. It didn't take long for the firm to reap the rewards. 'As lawyers, we're extremely focused on risk management,' says David Wakeling, partner and head of A&O Shearman's Markets Innovation Group (MIG). 'My team and I looked at generative AI, and quickly realised it was going to be disruptive.' The firm started experimenting with AI to augment legal processes, such as contract negotiation, in November, and achieved its objective of rolling out new AI tools to 2,000 lawyers across 43 jurisdictions by Christmas 2022. Using AI for contract drafting now saves A&O Sherman's lawyers around seven hours on average – a 30% efficiency gain. How to go faster, responsibly However, speed isn't everything. 'Today's rate of innovation poses new challenges for businesses,' says Colenso. 'How do we make that leap from concept to implementation – and do so responsibly? AI represents an incredible opportunity to accelerate business transformation, but it's human nature to find rapid change uncomfortable, even when it's positive. It's essential to follow a process that balances speed, innovation and integrity.' Step one: ideation Every AI journey begins with an idea. AI democratises the innovation process, enabling more people to bring their ideas to life, faster. But given the vast range of potential use cases, the challenge is often knowing where to start. The most successful projects focus first on what the organisation needs – what people need, whether they're employees, clients or customers. Ideas bear fruit more rapidly when ideation is collaborative. Bringing in people from departments across the organisation ensures the challenges you choose to tackle are deeply aligned with the organisation's vision and objectives. This step often takes around a month, but remember, ideation is a like a muscle organisations can continuously develop. It strengthens with consistent practice over time. Step two: integration During this phase, ideas are developed to become viable proofs of concept, supported by solid technical foundations as well as sound governance and oversight. Having legal and HR colleagues involved as part of a steering committee or 'AI circle of excellence' helps ensure that when time and energy are invested, they're invested in responsible and ethical applications. Putting proper guard rails in place during this stage can take a couple of months, yet enables you to move faster later on. It also helps to innovate on trusted cloud and data platforms like Azure, as our customers benefit from the world's most advanced infrastructure with security, privacy and sustainability at its core. With Azure and Azure AI, your data is your data . It's never used to train other foundational AI models. Step three: implementation Implementation is about taking a proof of concept to full production, making AI applications live and putting them in the hands of employees or customers. This is when education, skills and change management programmes become especially important. AI can only scale if it's adopted, which is about people, culture and community as much as it is about technology. This is often the most challenging stage and can take between three to six months. Throughout it all: integrity Clear, human values must underpin every stage of AI development. The technology's potential can only be fulfilled if we keep people at the centre, and act with integrity. When leaders are clear on their organisation's values and principles – and show they will stay true to them – it helps people stay grounded and adapt to change more successfully. This is exactly why Microsoft published detailed guidance around six core principles for responsible AI – fairness, safety, privacy, inclusivity, transparency and accountability – which we recommend any business leader read and consider, before stepping up AI efforts within their organisation. What comes next? The timelines will vary for every organisation. Some may take longer, while others progress faster and run multiple AI projects in parallel. However, if we can all balance speed with patience, while maintaining our commitment to socially fair development, cultural adoption, and skills growth, a more innovative future with AI is assured. To learn more about accelerating your AI journey, please visit the Microsoft Azure UK home page. This content is paid for and supplied by the advertiser. Find out more with our
