Bill Gates, the brains behind Microsoft, once shared that feeling at ease with the company’s monumental achievements didn’t come easily, even after becoming a billionaire. He noted that it wasn’t until the late ’90s that reality hit him. “I wouldn’t say that I felt comfortable that we were successful until about 1998 or so,” Gates admitted. “I thought I was one mistake away from death until then.”
Steve Jobs, the legendary co-founder of Apple, had some colorful opinions on Gates’ leadership and Microsoft’s product rollouts, as drawn from remarks shared with Fortune and The Independent. Bill Gates once recounted a memorable line from Jobs:
“Steve Jobs once said that he wished I’d take acid because then maybe I would have had more taste in my design of my products.”
With his trademark humor, Gates responded, “Look, I got the wrong batch.”
This banter hints at the complex friendship between Gates and Jobs. Their relationship wasn’t just about rivalry; Gates was instrumental in developing software for Apple’s early machines and, interestingly, helped rescue Apple from bankruptcy back in 1997 with a significant $150 billion investment.
Steve Jobs was known far and wide for his incredible design and marketing finesse. He took the helm in launching pivotal products like the iPhone and iMac, areas where Jobs thought Gates fell short. Yet, Gates closed the gap with his formidable technical skills.
Reflecting on their different fortes, Gates once said:
“I got the coding batch, and this guy got the marketing-design batch, so good for him. Because his talents and mine—other than being kind of an energetic leader, and pushing the limits—they didn’t overlap much.”
Meanwhile, Microsoft was heavily diving into cloud services, a move that significantly bolstered the company’s success and played a role in its colossal market valuation of over $3 trillion.
Microsoft also focused on delivering software excellence through its Office suite, including Word and Excel, platforms that continue to be used by millions globally. Despite these successes, Steve Jobs never quite warmed to Gates’ approach to product launches.
In a surprising twist, Gates casually mentioned in an interview with The Independent that he had experimented with drugs before Microsoft took off. He joked, “I thought maybe I would look cool, and some girl would think that was interesting. It didn’t succeed, so I gave it up.”
