It’s only been a few months since Bill’s last day at Microsoft. Everybody asked themselves (and him, obviously) “what’s next?” Clearly his greatest responsibility is to the Foundation, but to leave tech entirely? Not likely. Although it may be an ignominious comparison, consider Michael Corleone: “Just when I thought I was out… they pull me back in.” And now, his reentry to the tech world is in the form of a mysterious company with no stated objective. Will bgC3 be another force in the world of technology, or is it just a front so Bill has an office to go to every day?
While nobody’s sure exactly what bgC3 is, this business is no stranger to speculation, and given Bill’s thoughtful, forward-thinking, and incredibly rich nature of late, the consensus is that bgC3 is an incubator for all the things Bill wants to do but can’t with either the Foundation or Microsoft. The name does not signify too much, apparently standing for “Bill Gates’ Company III,” although an insider suggests the “C” stands for “catalyst.” Either way, the establishment of the company as a “think tank” (as documented in its paperwork) relating to scientific and technological services,” “industrial analysis and research,” and “design and development of computer hardware and software” is more telling.
