May 5, 2021: -On Monday, Bill Gates, co-founder and former CEO of Microsoft, and his wife, Melinda French Gates, tweeted that they will split up after 27 years of marriage. Both will continue to work together on philanthropic efforts, which address education, gender equality, and health care.

“After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have decided to end our marriage,” Bill and Melinda Gates wrote in a statement tweeted by Bill Gates.

“Over the last 27 years, we have raised three incredible children and built a foundation that works all over the world to enable all people to lead healthy, productive lives. We continue to share a belief in that mission and continue our work together at the foundation, but we no longer believe we can grow together as a couple in this next phase of our lives. We ask for space and privacy for our family as we begin to navigate this new life.” The decision includes a personal change at the top of the business in America.

Microsoft was led by Bill Gates as CEO from its founding with Paul Allen in 1975 until 2000, making the company run by Steve Ballmer, while Bill Gates became chairman and chief software architect.

Last year Bill Gates left Microsoft’s board as the coronavirus became a force worldwide. He started spending more time on the foundation with Melinda Gates. Both of them are co-chairs and trustees of the foundation, which was launched in 2000.

Bill and Melinda Gates both worked at Microsoft. She worked as a general manager at the software company, where she worked on products like the Encarta encyclopedia, according to her LinkedIn profile.

In 2015, both of them started to pursue their interested areas. Bill Gates established Breakthrough Energy to slow down climate change, including a venture arm, and Melinda Gates created a company that makes investments to foster equality known as Pivotal Ventures.

According to Forbes, Bill Gates is the world’s fourth-richest person, behind Amazon’s Jeff Bezos, LVMH’s Bernard Arnault, and Tesla’s Elon Musk.