Bill Gates has once again opened up about his complex relationship with Apple co-founder Steve Jobs, offering rare insights into how their differences helped shape the modern tech world. Speaking in recent interviews with Opening Bild and Yahoo Finance, Gates shed light on Jobs’ strengths—and what he lacked.
“Steve wasn’t an engineer. He didn’t understand source code or chip design,” Gates stated bluntly, “but his gift was his unmatched ability to identify and bring together people who could do those things incredibly well.”
Despite their professional rivalry, Gates spoke respectfully of Jobs’ design acumen. “He had an incredible intuition for user interface and design—something I didn’t have,” Gates admitted. “I genuinely envy his brilliance in that area.”
The Microsoft founder explained that their contrasting working styles often created a dynamic balance. “Steve would say things like, ‘I don’t want software to have manuals,’ which sounds extreme—but it pushed us to think differently. While he focused on the experience, my teams focused on the engineering needed to make it real.”
Gates also fondly recalled their early collaboration on Apple’s groundbreaking Macintosh computer. “Ironically, more people from Microsoft worked on the original Mac than Apple,” he said with a laugh. “It was an incredibly fun and creative project.”
Their professional journey may have been filled with contrasts, but according to Gates, that’s what made the partnership work: the visionary showman and the engineering strategist—two titans whose combined influence reshaped the world of personal computing.
