Bill Gates and Linux creator Linus Torvalds just met for the first time

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Linux creator Linus Torvalds have met for the first time ever. The Verge notes that it all happened at a dinner organised by Microsoft Azure CTO Mark Russinovich. “No major kernel decisions were made, but maybe next dinner,” jokes Mark Russinovich in a post on Linkedin, where he also uploaded a picture from the meeting. Gates and Torvalds represent two historically opposed paradigms in software: proprietary, commercial software (Windows) versus open source (Linux). In the 1990s, Microsoft even campaigned against Linux, whereas today the company contributes to the Linux kernel and uses it extensively in its Azure cloud infrastructure. The truce is no joke: In 2014, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella declared that “Microsoft ,” and in 2016, the tech titan joined the Linux Foundation.

Jun 24, 2025 - 00:10

Bill Gates and Linux creator Linus Torvalds just met for the first time

Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and Linux creator Linus Torvalds have met for the first time ever. The Verge notes that it all happened at a dinner organised by Microsoft Azure CTO Mark Russinovich.

“No major kernel decisions were made, but maybe next dinner,” jokes Mark Russinovich in a post on Linkedin, where he also uploaded a picture from the meeting.

Gates and Torvalds represent two historically opposed paradigms in software: proprietary, commercial software (Windows) versus open source (Linux). In the 1990s, Microsoft even campaigned against Linux, whereas today the company contributes to the Linux kernel and uses it extensively in its Azure cloud infrastructure. The truce is no joke: In 2014, Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella declared that “Microsoft ,” and in 2016, the tech titan joined the Linux Foundation.