Not so long ago, a YouGov poll put Bill Gates at the top of the world’s most admired men, with the Dalai Lama and Pope Francis in his wake. These days, you run into a lot of quiet noes. The kind of forums that used to put a spotlight on his work are having a change of heart, as old questions about his connection to Epstein come up and alter the calculus of who is on stage.
An admired man with less of a free pass
For a while, Gates has been busy rebranding from the no-nonsense co-founder of Microsoft to a champion for the planet and its people, all under the aegis of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. It was a successful reinvention that made him a must-have at any number of high-end events.
Lately, though, he’s been missing from a few of them. There’s some reputational housekeeping going on. With new Epstein files in the news, his past encounters have been hard to ignore. He’s put on the record that he met with Epstein more than once and regrets it. But with the steady stream of documents, event planners are being cautious.
Microsoft recalibrates Gates’ role
You can see it most plainly with Microsoft. When the company held its CEO Summit in May, Gates wasn’t there. For years he’d been part of the furniture at the event, even putting on a dinner for some at his home in Washington. This time around, his people were let on that it would be better if he sat this one out.
They make a point of saying it’s not the end of the road. “While it didn’t work out this year, we’ve already extended an invitation for Bill to attend the CEO Summit next year,” says a Microsoft rep. He may not be the top shareholder anymore, but he is still very much the face of the firm.
A message about optics and risk
It’s a no-nonsense way to keep the focus where it should be and the brand clean. When you have AI and geopolitics to talk about, you don’t want a founder’s name to be a side show. Corporate hosts are reading the room.
Berkshire ties cool, funding questions emerge
He was also absent from another institution he’s been a part of for a long time. This year’s Berkshire Hathaway meeting in Omaha went on without him, which is a first in decades. No one put a stop to it, but he was counseled against coming, given how things are being viewed.
Even the way Warren Buffett and the Gates Foundation do business is being looked at a little closer.
He was a trustee until 2021, when he put in his resignation in the wake of the Gates divorce. Then in 2024, Buffett made it known that the Gates Foundation would be left out of his will. As for their personal rapport, he told us in March he and Gates haven’t been in touch since the new Epstein files came to light, so he’s holding off on his yearly donation to the cause until he has a better read on things.
Some of the recent moves make for a clear change in course:
– He didn’t show up for the Microsoft CEO Summit in May
– Was a no-show at Berkshire Hathaway’s annual meeting
– The 2021 end of his trusteeship
– His 2024 pronouncement on the foundation
– A hold on this year’s gift
A case of diplomatic caution in India
You can see this wariness in how things played out in India. Back in February, Gates was set to be the keynote speaker at an AI Impact Summit in New Delhi. He had made the rounds in Vijayawada and Mumbai, but once he got to Delhi, his name was quietly taken off the roster while some officials had another look at him in light of the Epstein story.
He put in some time in Delhi, even at the Oberoi, to see if he could get the green light for a sit-down with the likes of Prime Minister Modi or President Macron. In the end, it was a non-starter. “After we’ve given it some thought, we’re going to have Mr. Gates forgo the keynote so we can keep the spotlight where it belongs,” the Gates Foundation put it.
When your clout as a philanthropist is built on being in the room, this kind of thing is noticeable. If you’re not at the top-tier events, you’re not as close to the people making calls, and it’s harder to put together a coalition for your health or climate work.
It also shows how these institutions are protecting their own turf. Even someone who was once as well-regarded as the Pope or the Dalai Lama is now being side-lined by hosts who don’t want any trouble.
Microsoft is leaving the window open for next year’s summit, which is fine if the headlines die down. But do this enough times, from one forum to the next, and it becomes the norm.
Where does that leave Gates?
All eyes will be on what Buffett does with his contribution this year. He comes back to the table and it might put minds at ease. Or he doesn’t, and you can bet other event planners will do as Microsoft and India have, and put the program before the star power.
