Bill Gates drove a tough bargain with his Microsoft co-founder Paul Allen, at one stage even discussing what amounted to “ripping off” his partner at a time when he was undergoing cancer treatment, according to claims in a memoir by Mr Allen due to be published in April.
Mr Allen’s account of his early days with Mr Gates, up to his 1983 departure from Microsoft, is set to add a controversial twist to one of the most prominent business partnerships of modern times. Like others who have worked with Mr Gates, Mr Allen depicts the long-time head of Microsoft as aggressively competitive and demanding of employees to the point of demeaning them, though his account of his personal dealings with Mr Gates raises fresh questions about business ethics.
Mr Gates declined to comment on the specific claims but in a general statement on the book, he said: “While my recollection of many of these events may differ from Paul’s, I value his friendship and the important contributions he made to the world of technology and at Microsoft.”