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Bill Gates Founds New "Think Tank" Company
Posted by
kdawson
on Fri Oct 24, 2008 01:13 PM
from the short-drive-from-the-house-on-the-lake dept.
from the short-drive-from-the-house-on-the-lake dept.
Homncruse sends in news of Bill Gates's new adventure, adding "I was working just one or two floors under this new office when it was all coming together. I even unknowingly shared an elevator with him at one time on his way up to the office." The article notes that the name "bgC3" derives from Bill Gates, catalyst, and the "third thing," neither Microsoft or the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation.
"Just months after his Microsoft farewell, Bill Gates is quietly creating a new company — complete with high-tech office space, a cryptic name and even its own trademark. Public documents describe the new Gates entity — bgC3 LLC — as a 'think tank.' It's housed within a Kirkland office that the Microsoft co-founder established on his own after leaving his day-to-day executive role at the company this summer ... However, bgC3 will also oversee Gates' personal pursuit of breakthrough ideas in science and technology. [An] insider said the goal isn't necessarily to create new companies, although ideas could be passed along to Microsoft, the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation — or others — as it makes sense ..."
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Borg Cubed? (Score:5, Funny)
Did the name 'bgc3' make anyone else think "Borg Cubed"?
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There were one or two projects left over from the Traf-O-Data days he wants to look into. Also it will be a training school for Bulldozer drivers.
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I doubt it. In any event, you'd have to be richer than Bill Gates to find out.
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Did the name 'bgc3' make anyone else think "Borg Cubed"?
I was actually thinking "Bubblegum Crisis 3"...
Re:Borg Cubed? (Score:5, Funny)
Sure, but it's vastly inferior to (and has been replaced by) C4. C5 (with even more bang for the buck) is still in beta testing. :)
Parent
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Can I get an invite to the beta?
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Corbis? (Score:4, Informative)
Corbis is Bill Gates' second company, not the Foundation.
-Isaac
Rich PPL (Score:5, Funny)
Re:Rich PPL (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
Re:Rich PPL (Score:5, Funny)
Parent
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Amazon a-bombs, Ballmer bombers, Slashdot submarines?
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Is that a new english word for a piece of furniture?
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Remember kiddies; after dropping a "Ballmer Bomber", Use TP, flush, and wash your hands!
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Balmer's Guided Cruise Chairs[TM].
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GAWD! First Google with jet fighters... now Bill Gates with think TANKS. What's next?
Oh, I wouldn't worry about it too much. Those Fuchikomas are pretty dangerous if you are fighting one, but ordinarily they're too preoccupied with musing on the philosophical implications of their existence as A.I. and the meaning of humanity in an increasingly cybernetic world, or obsessing over data-linking with every intelligent machine they come across to give much thought to practical matters...
hope he doesnt become a patent troll (Score:4, Insightful)
"It's housed within a Kirkland office" (Score:5, Funny)
Costco sells offices now?
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"Costco sells offices now?"
Only in bulk.
Seems sensible (Score:5, Insightful)
Re:Seems sensible (Score:5, Funny)
An underground lair located in a volcano?
I bet he could afford real sharks.
Parent
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Re:Seems sensible (Score:4, Informative)
I bet it's on the "Kirkland Riviera," the part of downtown Kirkland that's right on the lake. There are even bikinis visible in the parks there during the three warm weeks of the year.
I live nearby. I should polish up my resume. ;)
Parent
Its a media company (Score:3, Funny)
They are going to make crappy commercials staring Bill with has-been comedians.
Congrats Bill (Score:2)
nothing profitable outside of Windows, (Score:2)
and the B&MGF just spends profits from MSFT and even has been said to require Microsoft-only software in computer donations. So no wonder Bill Gates is trying to get others to come up with an idea he can profit from. With Microsoft having been a one-trick pony for all these years, just maybe Bill can find someone else who can come up with a hit.
Knowing the history of Microsoft and Windows, it was not really the product which made the business, it was the business behind the product and that faithful dea
MSFT recent earnings report (Score:2)
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To be fair, it is most likely just the way any true computer nerd/geek will express themselves, when they can afford to do so. What better than their own private lab, to explore their own ideas, as well as investigate new ones. So a self indulgence, likely but, it is still far better than spending it of private jets and mega yachts or on other ostentatious extravagances.
Who knows perhaps they might even explore new ideas in free open source software.
IOW, "Organised Crime Sets Up in Kirkland" (Score:2)
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I'm impressed. Numerologically you user id adds up to 3.
It must be frustrating for Bill personally. Imagine having billions of dollars at your disposal with every toy you want and realise that it's not enough, that you want to sit down with a clean sheet of paper on a new desk with a sharpened pencil and start thinking creatively.
He's had a few years to do this and decided in the end that it's best to 'outsource' the creative aspect by forming a company and hiring creative people for his own personal thinkt
All your idea are belong to us (Score:2)
I wonder if the employment contract BG signed with Microsoft had the usual clause of "everything you've previously thought of, are currently thinking of, or will think of belongs to us" ?
I used to have a BFG3000 (Score:2)
I used to be pretty good with a BFG3000.
I wonder if Bill likes to frag.
bgc3.com (Score:2)
I looked at the source code of his new webpage [bgc3.com] and he ISN'T using Frontpage.
what vision? (Score:5, Insightful)
Gates' personal pursuit of breakthrough ideas in science and technology.
Good that he finally gets started on some. Seriously, the guy is great in stealing and rebranding other ideas as his own, but that's it. I've yet to hear of even one original idea by Bill Gates.
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Re:640GB should be enough for anyone... (Score:4, Informative)
Anyone who thinks Gates is a "visionary" clearly hasn't read Gates' The Road Behind [amazon.com].
On a side note, Amazon says:
The Road Ahead (Penguin Readers, Level 3) (Paperback)
ROTFLMAO
Parent
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Just a quick question, what would the man have to do in order for you to accept that he is a visionary? Now don't for a second think that I'm calling him one, what I'm saying is that one should not have to invent every useful program/concept in order to qualify as a visionary.
So he missed the internet, big deal, it's not like he was the only one.
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At the time MS was trying to sell its MSN service as a walled garden as opposed to going straight to the internet. This was an attempt to compete with AOL, prodigy, etc. I wouldnt be surprised if Bill knew that the real fad was these walled garden services, but as always, business first. MSN now is just a website.
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Re:640GB should be enough for anyone... (Score:4, Informative)
Parent
Re:640GB should be enough for anyone... (Score:4, Interesting)
Only because you have come to accept poor quality. If people didn't spend 20 years with PC's that were unreliable, they wouldn't accept poor quality in other areas. Now I have to deal with a cell phone that reboots daily, because its "good enough."
There is no fundamental reason why a desk top PC is going to be unreliable. Poor design and quality control of the OS is the cause.
Parent
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Blaming poor quality software written by other developers on Microsoft is pure blind hatred. Would you blame a defect in a pair of shoes on a competitor?
Bottom line, companies choose their own quality levels. Some are exceptional, some aren't and the median level is set from that. Your cell phone's company made its own choices about quality. There are plenty of phones out there that work just fine (mine included) - don't shift blame.
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while AMD buys an aircraft carrier from the near-bankrupt US Army
Umm that would be the Navy.
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Maybe that's why the Army is 'near-bankrupt'.
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I have about a million items
wrong with microsoft software products
that could use some design review.
Not sure why it didn't happen the
first time, but maybe Bill has some
time on his hands now.
Burma Shave.