Bill Gates’ ex-wife calls out billionaires: “We’re seeing some of their true personalities”
The former wife of the creator of Microsoft has warned of rising billionaire influence in U.S. politics.
Melinda French Gates, the ex-wife of tech whizz Bill Gates, has called out the world’s billionaires, saying that they have “different” values on society to her.
French Gates is one of the world’s most well-known philanthropists, and is a founding member of the Gates Foundation, a cause committed to “fighting the greatest inequities”.
However, following her divorce from the Microsoft founder last year, French Gates left her role in the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. As part of her divorce agreement, she was awarded $12.5 billion for her work. According to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index, her net worth is now $14.4 billion.
By naming himself for the patron saint of the poor, Pope Francis placed poverty at the center of the Gospel. With grace & love, with faith in action, His Holiness used a healing hand to lift up the most vulnerable among us. Spending time with him was one of the honors of my life. pic.twitter.com/JhaCJewzWi
— Melinda French Gates (@melindagates) April 21, 2025
French Gates hits out at billionaire class
Despite her wealth, French Gates says she is not aligned with her fellow billionaires, commenting that they “have values that they espouse (that) are just different than mine.” Without naming names, she revealed that “I know a lot of these folks. I’ve met a lot of them.”
French Gates co-founded The Giving Pledge in 2010 alongside her then-husband, Bill Gates, and billionaire Warren Buffett. The initiative encourages the world’s richest individuals to commit at least half of their wealth to charitable and philanthropic causes, either during their lives or through their wills. Sam Altman and his husband recently joined the pledge, but notably, Jeff Bezos — the world’s second-richest person — has yet to sign on.
“If you have a billion dollars, that’s an absurd amount of wealth. You have a moral responsibility to give away at least half of it‚” French Gates told CNN. She has also criticised Elon Musk’s DOGE cuts, saying she didn’t “understand” them, and hit out at Trump’s cancellation of USAID: “My heart breaks for the people I have met,” French Gates said. “USAID is there. Their health systems are up and functioning. People literally know that, because of the US government, they are receiving maternal health services or food or pills for malaria.”
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