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SEATTLE – Paul G. Allen, co-founder of Microsoft with his childhood friend Bill Gates before becoming a billionaire philanthropist, technology investor and owner of several professional sports teams, has passed away. He was 65 years old.
He died Monday in Seattle, according to his company Vulcan Inc. Earlier this month, Allen had announced the return of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma for which he had been treated in 2009 and planned to fight it aggressively.
Gates said he was heartbroken by the loss of one of his "oldest and most expensive friends".
"The personal computer would not have existed without him," Gates said in a statement, adding that Allen's "second act" as a philanthropist was "focused on improving of people's lives and building communities in Seattle and around the world. "
Allen and Gates met while they were attending a private school in North Seattle. The two friends will later leave college to pursue the future they envision: a world with a computer in every home.
Gates believed so much in his dream that he left Harvard University in his first year to devote himself full time to his startup and that of Allen, baptized by Allen Micro-Soft, an abbreviation for microprocessors and software. Allen spent two years at Washington State University before dropping out.
They founded the company in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and their first product was a computer language for the Altair hobby kit personal computer, offering enthusiasts a simple way to program and operate the machine.
After Gates and Allen had some success in selling their programming language, MS-Basic, Seattle residents moved to Bellevue, Washington, in 1979, not far from his future home in Redmond. .
The big break from Microsoft took place in 1980, when IBM Corp. decided to switch to personal computers and asked Microsoft to provide the operating system.
Gates and the company did not invent the operating system. To meet the needs of IBM, they spent $ 50,000 for the purchase of software called QDOS to another programmer, Tim Paterson. Finally, the product developed by Microsoft – and renamed DOS for Disk Operating System – became the heart of IBM PCs and their clones, propelling Microsoft into its dominant position in the PC industry.
Early versions of two classic Microsoft products, Microsoft Word and the Windows operating system, were released in 1983. In 1991, Microsoft's operating systems were used by 93% of the personal computers in the world .
The Windows operating system is now used on most of the world's desktop computers and Word is the cornerstone of the company's most popular desktop products.
Allen, however, left the company just eight years after its inception in 1975. He held the position of senior vice president of research and new product development at Microsoft until 1983, when he resigned after being diagnosed with cancer.
"Being 30 years old and having that kind of shock – to cope with your mortality – really gives you the feeling that you should do some things you have not done yet," Allen said in a 2000 book: "Inside Out: Microsoft in our own words."
Two weeks ago, Allen announced that a different cancer – non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, for which he had been treated in 2009 – had returned.
Over the course of several decades, Allen has spent more than $ 2 billion on a wide range of interests, including ocean health, homelessness and scientific research. With his sister Jody Allen in 1986, Paul Allen founded Vulcan, the investment firm that oversees his business and philanthropic efforts.
"Millions of people have been touched by his generosity, his persistence in the quest for a better world, and his willingness to do whatever he could with the time and resources he had." said Vulcan CEO Bill Hilf.
Allen was on the list of the richest people in America who pledged to donate the bulk of their fortune to charity. "Those who have the chance to make great wealth should put it at the service of the good of humanity," he said.
Its influence is firmly embedded in the cultural landscape of Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, from the brilliant metal museum of popular culture designed by architect Frank Gehry up to the computer center of the city. 39, University of Washington that bears his name.
He founded the Allen Institute for Brain Science and the Stratolaunch Aerospace Corporation, which built a colossal aircraft designed to launch satellites into orbit. He also supported research on nuclear fusion energy.
"My brother was a remarkable person at all levels," said his sister Jody Allen in a statement. "Paul's family and friends had the chance to experience his spirit, warmth, generosity and deep concern."
Allen also funded the SpaceShipOne of Burt Rutan, designer of the non-conformist aerospace, which became in 2004 the first privately developed manned spaceship to reach space.
Sir Richard Branson has licensed the SpaceShipOne technology for Virgin Galactic, which tests the following design to transport tourists short jumps in the lower regions of space.
Branson tweeted Monday: "So sad to learn of the passing of Paul Allen Among many other things, he was a pioneer of commercial space travel." We shared the belief that it was possible to Explore space for new ways to improve life on Earth. "
Allen was also a sports enthusiast and used part of his fortune to buy several professional teams.
In 1988, at age 35, he bought the Portland Trail Blazers and told The Associated Press that "for a true football fan, this dream has come true."
He was also co-owner of Seattle Sounders FC, a major league football team, and had bought the Seattle Seahawks. Allen could sometimes be seen at parties or chatting in the locker room with players.
When he released his 2011 memoir, "Idea Man," he let 60 minutes into his home on Lake Washington, across from Seattle, revealing collections ranging from Jimi Hendrix's guitar playing in Woodstock to airplanes. vintage war and yacht with her own submarine.
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