Bill Gates never studied at University of Washington, but it paid him $500 as a teen; 5 decades later, Microsoft co-founder is giving it $540 million

Bill Gates never studied at the University of Washington, but the school paid him $500 as a teenager and gave him precious access to computers. Five decades and many billions later, the Microsoft co-founder is returning the favor with a record $540 million commitment to the same university.

The extraordinary full-circle story links Gates’ teenage fascination with computers to one of the biggest philanthropic gifts in the University of Washington’s history.