By Myrlia Purcell on
College drop-out turned technology super-star Bill Gates announced that over the next two years he will withdraw from his daily role at Microsoft in order to dedicate himself full-time to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation.
At 50, Gates is currently the world’s richest man, with a personal worth estimated at $50 billion. The $30 billion Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation focuses on health and education charities.
The Microsoft founder is one of many philanthropists helping others using wealth gained quickly through the technology boom.
Fellow Microsoft pioneer, Paul Allen, awards nearly $30 million in grants every year through a charitable fund he created.
Other big players include eBay creator Pierre Omidya, who created a $400 million fund to aid development in poverty-stricken countries, and Google founders Sergey Brin and Larry Page, who have dedicated $1 billion to fighting poverty and helping energy consumption.
Copyright © 2006 Look to the Stars
Source: Yahoo! News