Bill Gates commits to closing Gates Foundation by 2045
- Bill Gates announced that the Gates Foundation will close its operations in 2045, accelerating its timeline to donate nearly all his wealth.
- The foundation plans to spend $200 billion over the next two decades to address health issues and global poverty.
- The closure reflects a strategy shift in funding philanthropy more intensively while preparing for an end to the foundation's operations.
In a significant development announced by Bill Gates, the Gates Foundation established in 2000 will cease its operations on December 31, 2045. Originally planned to continue for decades beyond Gates and Melinda Gates' deaths, this new timeline reflects a commitment to donate nearly all of Gates' remaining fortune, estimated at approximately $113 billion. The foundation aims to address pressing global health issues, particularly focusing on reducing the mortality rates of preventable causes among newborns, children, and mothers, eliminating diseases like polio, malaria, and measles, and alleviating poverty. Over the next two decades, the foundation has pledged to invest around $200 billion. Gates emphasized the urgency to resolve critical issues and intends to give away 99% of his wealth, necessitating expanded philanthropic efforts and donations. The announcement also coincides with strategic shifts in the foundation's leadership, following Melinda French Gates' departure in 2024 to pursue her own philanthropic initiatives and the exit of Warren Buffett in 2022, which marked pivotal changes in the foundation's trajectory. This decision to close in 2045 follows a period of reconsideration about its operational structure, with Gates believing that their goals could be met sooner with intensified investments. As the foundation prepares to transition, it also reported an increased budget for the coming years, with expectations of $9 billion in spending by 2026. The Gates Foundation has played a crucial role in global public health initiatives and will continue to do so until its planned closure, ceasing operations after making significant contributions to health and welfare worldwide, particularly in poorer communities.