From Pranks To Programming: Bill Gates Opens Up About His School Days

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates opened up about his childhood days in an Ask Me Anything session on Instagram. Promoting his book Source Code on social media, the billionaire invited people to ask questions about his memoir. When someone asked if he was a nerd in his school days, Mr Gates revealed that he was more of a “class clown.”

Sharing the question on his Instagram Stories, Bill Gates wrote, “I was actually the class clown for a long time. But there were two experiences that helped me realize I wanted to be more than that.” 

Talking about the moments that changed his outlook towards his life, Mr Gates added, "First, I started getting paired up for class projects with the other kids in class who got bad grades-and I thought, ‘Holy sh*t, they actually think I'm stupid.' Second, I became best friends with a guy named Kent Evans, who got great grades and dreamed big and made me want to do the same."

Asked if he ever got in trouble with his parents while sneaking out at night, the 69-year-old said that his parents most probably knew about him sneaking out, but they never objected as long as he kept his grades up and stayed out of trouble. 

Bill Gates also shared an anecdote about his late friend Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft with him in 1975. He wrote, "Paul was a couple of years older than me, cooler than me, and one of the only kids in high school with a full beard.

"We met at the computer lab after our school got a teletype machine-I'm pretty sure ‘Bill, you think you're so smart, you figure this thing out,' was the first thing my future business partner ever said to me."

Paul Allen became a philanthropist and sports team owner later in his life. The entrepreneur died in 2018. 

Earlier, this month, Mr Gates, talked about his relationship with Paula Hurd, calling her his "serious girlfriend".

"I'm lucky to have a serious girlfriend named Paula," Mr Gates said. "So we're having fun, going to the Olympics and lots of great things."

The two have been spotted together at various public events, including at the 2024 Olympics.