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SEATTLE – Personal computers, conservation, professional football, rock 'n' roll and rockets: Paul G. Allen could not have asked for a better way to spend, invest and donate billions of dollars. he reaped by co-founding Microsoft with his childhood friend Bill Doors.
Allen has used Microsoft's wealth – with the Windows operating system installed on most desktop computers around the world – to invest in other ambitions, from climate change to brain research. , looking for innovative solutions to solve some of the biggest challenges in the world.
"If it has the potential to do good, then we should do it," said his friend, quoted by Gates.
Allen died Monday in Seattle of a non-Hodgkin's lymphoma, according to his company Vulcan Inc. He was 65 years old. Just two weeks ago, Allen, owner of the Seattle Seahawks of the NFL and Portland Trail Blazers of the NBA, announced that the same cancer he was back in 2009.
Gates, who met Allen at a private school in Seattle, said he was sorry he had lost one of his "oldest and dearest 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. "
During his lifetime, Allen has spent more than $ 2 billion on efforts to improve education, science, technology, conservation and communities.
"Those who have the chance to make great wealth should put it at the service of humanity," Allen wrote several years ago, announcing that he gave most of his fortune to charity. He said this promise "reminds all of us that our net worth is ultimately defined not in dollars but in the quality of our services to others".
Allen, who played the guitar, built a glittering pop culture museum in his hometown to show his love of rock n 'roll, and funded underwater expeditions that made important discoveries of sinking, including an American aircraft carrier lost during the Second World War.
However, in a way, Allen also respected the nickname that Wired Magazine had already given him: "The Accidental Zillionaire". He was a programmer who invented Microsoft's name and greatly contributed to his initial success, but was eclipsed by his partner's acerbics. intellect and business acumen.
For example, when the company was founded, Allen let Gates tell him he had to split the 60-40 split. A few years later, he chose an even smaller share, 36%, at the insistence of Gates. Reflecting at that moment, Allen concluded in his brief that he may have had more trouble haggling, but realized that "my heart was not there." So I accepted.
Allen was born in Seattle. After graduating from Lakeside School, the city's private school, where he met Gates, Allen spent two years at Washington State University. The two friends both left the university to pursue the future they envisioned: a world with a computer in every home.
"There would be no Microsoft as we know it without Paul Allen," said Rob Enderle, a long-time technology analyst, also a consultant for Allen.
Allen and Gates founded Microsoft in Albuquerque, New Mexico, and their first product was a computer language for the Altair hobby kit personal computer, providing enthusiasts with a simple way to program and learn more about it. 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 in Microsoft took place in 1980, when IBM Corp. decided to settle in personal computers and asked Microsoft to provide the operating system.
Gates and Allen agreed, even though they did not have one. To meet IBM's needs, they spent $ 50,000 to purchase an operating system called QDOS from another Seattle startup, but did not overlook the fact that they had been aligned with as a customer. Finally, the product developed by Microsoft has become the heart of IBM PCs and their clones, which has allowed Microsoft to position itself dominantly in the PC sector.
Early versions of two classic Microsoft products, Microsoft Word and the Windows operating system, were released in 1983. By 1991, Microsoft's operating systems were used by 93% of personal computers worldwide.
Allen was executive vice president of research and development of Microsoft's new products until 1983, when he resigned after being diagnosed with Hodgkin's disease.
But Allen left Microsoft knowing that he and Gates would be forever linked in the history of technology.
"We were amazing partners," Allen wrote. "Despite our differences, few co-founders had shared such a unified view – maybe Hewlett and Packard and Sergey Brin and Google's Larry Page, but the list was short."
After leaving Microsoft, Allen would remain interested in technology, particularly in the field of artificial intelligence, who remembered having piqued all his interest while he was still a teenager after reading " I, Robot ', a science fiction book by Isaac Asimov.
"From my youth, I had never stopped thinking about the future," Allen wrote in his 2011 memoir, "Idea Man."
In 1986, along with his sister Jody Allen, Allen founded Vulcan, which oversees its business and philanthropic efforts. 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 has also supported research on nuclear fusion energy and numerous technology start-ups.
Allen also funded SpaceShipOne from Burt Rutan, one of the aerospace industry's designers, who in 2004 became 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.
However, Allen has never failed to replicate Microsoft's success. According to Enderle, what he always seemed to miss, was another Bill Gates to help him achieve his dreams.
"He was a decent engineer who had a good time for an idea of his life, and it was a great idea," said Enderle.
When Allen published his memoirs, he let "60 minutes" at his home on Lake Washington, over Seattle's water, revealing collections ranging from Jimi Hendrix's guitar in Woodstock to vintage warplanes. and a 300-foot yacht with submarine.
"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," she added.
Paul Allen's influence is deeply rooted in the cultural landscape of Seattle and the Pacific Northwest, from the brilliant metal museum of popular culture designed by architect Frank Gehry to the computer center at the University of Washington who carries his name.
In 1988, at the age of 35, he bought the Portland Trail Blazers professional basketball team. He told the Associated Press that "for a true fan of the game, it's a dream 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.
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Associated Press editors Michael Liedtke in San Francisco and Lisa Baumann in Seattle contributed to this report.
Copyright 2018 The Associated Press. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, disseminated, rewritten or redistributed.
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