Sorry, ladies, but I regret to inform you that Bill Gates is officially off the market. That’s right, after two years of speculation, Gates has confirmed that he has a “serious” girlfriend and they are “having fun” doing completely normal rich couple activities, like going to the Olympics. Just another casual date night, amirite?! (/sarcasm) Anyway, Bill’s lady, Paula Hurd, is a philanthropist and events organizer. She’s also the widow of the late Oracle CEO Mark Hurd. Bill talked a little bit more about their relationship while plugging his memoir on Today.
Bill Gates is finally opening up about his relationship with girlfriend Paula Hurd! The billionaire philanthropist — whose debut memoir Source Code: My Beginnings is out now — spoke about his new romance during an appearance on the Today show Tuesday, Feb. 4, telling Savannah Guthrie, “I’m lucky to have a serious girlfriend named Paula.”
“We’re having fun,” Gates, 69, said. “Going to the Olympics and lots of great things.”
News of the couple’s pairing began circulating in 2023, around four years after the death of Hurd’s husband, former Oracle CEO Mark Hurd, and two years after Gates’ marriage to ex-wife Melinda French Gates ended.
Since then, Hurd has been by the Microsoft co-founder’s side on numerous occasions, including Jeff Bezos’ engagement party and the Paris Olympics. Last April, they even made their red carpet debut at the 10th Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at the Academy Museum of Motion Pictures.
Gates’ appearance on Today came days after The Times of London published an interview with him, in which he called his divorce from French Gates “the mistake I most regret.”
He clarified his comments on the NBC morning news show, explaining that he wasn’t saying he wished the split wouldn’t have happened.
“Despite the fact that the divorce wasn’t great, having those three kids, the work we were able to do together — even if I knew that it [wouldn’t] last forever, I would still do it again.”
“My business career, though, there’s been some up and downs, has been incredibly phenomenal. My kids are phenomenal. So it’s even hard for me to complain about things,” Gates said. “I’ve moved past the divorce, and Melinda’s doing well. I’ve got a lot of work that I love to do. So I’m not really complaining about anything.”
Gates and French Gates share three children: son Rory, 25, daughter Phoebe, 22, and daughter Jennifer, 28, as well as two grandchildren, Jennifer’s daughters Leila and Mia.
Hurd, a University of Texas graduate with a bachelor’s degree in business administration, is a developer, philanthropist as well as an organizer of “memorable” event experiences, according to her LinkedIn bio. Additionally, she is a mother of two — daughters Kathryn and Kelly.
Although Gates’ memoir takes place decades before their romance began, Hurd still got a shout-out at the end of the book.
“Early readers of the manuscript included Paula Hurd, Marc St. John and Sheila Gulati,” Gates wrote in the acknowledgements section. “The close read from dear and trusted friends provided much-needed thoughtful and insightful feedback at critical stages in the writing.”
Well, good for them, I guess. I still think his ex-wife, Melinda French Gates, made out better in this situation. Speaking of, I am fascinated by Bill’s quote about their divorce being his biggest regret because it totally feels like he had some brief moment of actual introspection. He’s not trying to get back with her and he presumably doesn’t need anything from her, so maybe he did have a FAFO moment.
Anyway, back to Paula! She sounds like a normal, age-appropriate rich lady who fits right into Bill’s world of technology and philanthropy and all that. Her husband of almost 30 years passed from cancer, so hopefully she’s found happiness. I also Googled her and noticed that in every picture, she is dressed appropriately with her boobs in check, so good for Bill for not going the Bezos route with his first serious post-divorce relationship.
Photos credit: Rob Liggins/Netflix, Netflix Press, Best Image/Backgrid, Aissaoui Nacer/Backgrid, Nicky Nelson/Wenn/Avalon, Xavier Collin/Image Press Agency/Avalon, IMAGO/Faye Sadou/Avalon