Gates Marks Microsoft’s 40th Birthday with Look-Ahead Employee Letter

We all know time flies. But it’s only the looking back that reminds us just how fast it actually whizzes by. And, time in the IT industry zooms by faster than just about any other place–blink a few times and technology has changed.

So, it’s been 40 years since Bill Gates and Paul Allen started Microsoft (MSFT). While Allen is long gone from the company, Gates timed stepping into a new role at Microsoft to chief executive Satya Nadella’s ascension, now devoting about a third of his time to doling out advice on new products.

Last Friday, Gates emailed a letter to Microsoft employees to celebrate the company’s 40th birthday, or anniversary, take your pick. In particular, Gates said that Microsoft is “better positioned than ever to lead” advances in computing under Nadella’s direction.

The Verge picked up Gates’ email from a Twitter (TWTR) post by Amit Choudhary and it subsequently ran at other news sites as well. Here’s the text of Gates’ message:

Friday 4/3/2015 10:33AM
From: Bill Gates
To: Microsoft — All Employees
Subject: Microsoft’s 40th Anniversary

Tomorrow is a special day: Microsoft’s 40th anniversary.

Early on, Paul Allen and I set the goal of a computer on every desk and in every home. It was a bold idea and a lot of people thought we were out of our minds to imagine it was possible. It is amazing to think about how far computing has come since then, and we can all be proud of the role Microsoft played in that revolution.

Today though, I am thinking much more about Microsoft’s future than its past. I believe computing will evolve faster in the next 10 years than it ever has before. We already live in a multi-platform world, and computing will become even more pervasive. We are nearing the point where computers and robots will be able to see, move and interact naturally, unlocking many new applications and empowering people even more.

Under Satya’s leadership, Microsoft is better positioned than ever to lead these advances. We have the resources and drive to solve tough problems. We are engaged in every facet of modern computing and have the deepest commitment to research in the industry. In my role as technical advisor to Satya, I get to join product reviews and am impressed by the vision and talent I see. The result is evident in products like Cortana, Skype Translator, and HoloLens-and those are just a few of the many innovations that are on the way.

In the coming years, Microsoft has the opportunity to react even more people and organizations around the world. Technology is still out of reach for many people, because it is complex or expensive, of they simply do not have access. So I hope you will think about what you can do to make the power of technology accessible to everyone, to connect people to each other, and make personal computing available everywhere even as the very notion of what a PC delivers makes its way into all devices.

We have accomplished a lot together during our first 40 years and empowered countless businesses and people to realize their full potential. But what matters most now is what we do next. Thank you for helping make Microsoft a fantastic company now and for decades to come.