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Once recognized as one of the world’s most high-profile power couples, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates’ marriage ended abruptly in May 2021. After 27 years of marriage, the co-founders of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation announced the news of their divorce, shocking the world and sparking widespread curiosity and speculation about what led to the end of a seemingly stable and loving marriage.
For years, their union stood as a symbol of philanthropy, innovation, and partnership. So it was more than tragic and shocking when the couple split up, stirring up rumors about the underlying reasons for their separation. From alleged affairs to their connection to the infamous s*x offender Jeffrey Epstein, a plethora of theories emerged providing alleged reasons as the cause of their divorce.
So while such rumors continue to exist, over the years after their divorce, Bill and Melinda have themselves spoken up about what went wrong in their decades-long marriage. Now having gone their separate ways, the two are doing better than before, and recently Bill even remarked on their failed marriage, showing his regret about the whole situation.
So, here is a look at the failed love life of Bill Gates and Melinda Gates, what went wrong for them, and whether or not Jeffrey Epstein had something to do with their divorce.
When did Bill Gates and Melinda Gates get divorced?
The co-founder of Microsoft,Bill Gates, met Melinda French when she started as a product manager at the company. The duo connected in 1987 after a sales meeting in New York City, where Melinda first turned him down. However, soon their relationship blossomed into love and in 1993 the duo was engaged.
Then in 1994, they finally tied the knot on Hawaii’s island of Lanai, celebrating their union with a lavish wedding attended by their family and friends.Parents to three kids, Melinda even left her job at Microsoft to take care of their kids. Then over the years, the duo completed several more milestones together, including establishing the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation in 2000 and being awarded the Presidential Medal of Freedom for their philanthropy in 2016 (viaPEOPLE).
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Despite their many public appearances and interviews offering insights into their ‘loving’ relationship, the couple separated in 2021, announcing their separation in a joint statement viaX(formerly Twitter) on May 3.
After a great deal of thought and a lot of work on our relationship, we have made the decision to end our marriage. 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.
Revealing their decision to continue working together for the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, the duo added,
We continue to share a belief in that mission and will 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.
However, on August 06, 2025, Melinda Gates resigned from the foundation, announcing the news onInstagram. Meanwhile, by June 02, 2025, their divorce was finalized. But their divorce only made matters worse for them as it led to scores of rumors dealing with alleged affairs to internal conflicts between the two that led to their eventual separation.
Over the years, both Bill and Melinda have come clean about what led to their eventual split, with their revelations even proving some rumors right.
Did Jeffrey Epstein have something to do with Bill Gates and Melinda Gates’s divorce?
Ever since their divorce, Bill Gates and Melinda Gates have reunited several times for a range of reasons as well as spoken in depth about their marriage and divorce. In December 2021, Bill was the first one to open up about their divorce, revealing in a blog post (viaPEOPLE), that while he had found a good working rhythm amid everything that happened in his professional and personal life, it was ayear of great sadnessfor him.
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Then in March 2022, Melinda broke the silence on their divorce, revealing some shocking and startling details in an exclusive interview withCBS Mornings. While speaking to co-host Gayle King, she said that she never expected that one day she would end up divorced and that her split from Bill would become a topic of national discourse.
After the news of their divorce came out, the Microsoft co-founder admitted to having an affair. However, when Melinda was asked about rumors of him having multiple affairs throughout their marriage, Melinda stated thatthose are questions Bill needs to answer.
Moreover, there wasn’t just one thing or reason that led to their divorce, it was a range of causes that kept building up over the years, as theNew York Timescovers extensively. Moreover, Bill’s relationship with the convicted s*x offenderJeffrey Epsteinalso played a part in her decision, as she recalled to CBS—As I said, it’s not one thing, it was many things. But I did not like that he’d had meetings with Jeffrey Epstein, no. Melinda even went on to meet Epstein to see who he was, and it was a decision she regretted gravely.
I regretted it from the second I stepped in the door. He was abhorrent. He was evil personified. I had nightmares about it afterwards. So, you know, my heart breaks for these young women, because that’s how I felt, and here I’m an older woman. My god, I feel terrible for those young women. It was awful.
Meanwhile, in a statement given to CBS News, Bill Gates himself remarked that he regretted meeting Epstein and thatit was a substantial error in judgment.
While Melinda has moved on and enjoying her time healing (seeTIME), Bill recently opened up about their divorce in a profile published inThe Times. Calling his split from his wife of 27 years the mistake he most regrets, he revealed that it was his marriage with Melinda that kept him grounded amid all those years of ups and downs.
Maria Sultan
Senior Writer
Articles Published :2703
Maria Sultan is a dedicated News Content Writer at FandomWire. With over five years of professional experience and hundreds of published articles, she brings a wealth of expertise to her coverage of Marvel, K-dramas, and the latest on streaming platforms.Her work is not just about reporting news; it’s about providing insightful perspectives on the entertainment trends that matter most.
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