Bill Gates’s Girlfriend Paula Hurd Gets Special Shoutout in His Memoir- and So Do His 3 Kids

Bill Gates’s Girlfriend Paula Hurd Gets Special Shoutout in His Memoir- and So Do His 3 Kids

“The close read from dear and trusted friends provided much-needed thoughtful and insightful feedback,” he writes in his memoir of Hurd and others

Bill Gates and Paula Hurd attend the 10th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony at Academy Museum of Motion Pictures on April 13, 2024 in Los Angeles, California.
From left: Bill Gates and Paula Hurd attended the 10th Annual Breakthrough Prize Ceremony in April 2024. PHOTO: AXELLE/BAUER-GRIFFIN/FILMMAGIC

  • Bill Gates gave special thanks to his girlfriend Paula Hurd and his three kids, whom he shares with ex-wife Melinda French Gates, in the acknowledgments of his upcoming memoir, Source Code
  • Gates tells PEOPLE in an interview that his children were all “glad to read” his book, out next week
  • “It’s great for them to get a picture of where they come from,” he says

Bill Gates included a shoutout to girlfriend Paula Hurd in his upcoming memoir — and he made sure to give his three kids some extra love, too.

In the acknowledgments of Source Code, which chronicles the billionaire’s childhood all the way through the early days of Microsoft, the 69-year-old philanthropist added in a brief message to Hurd, whom he has been dating since his divorce from ex-wife Melinda French Gates.

“Early readers of the manuscript included Paula Hurd, Marc St. John, and Sheila Gulati,” Gates wrote. “The close read from dear and trusted friends provided much-needed thoughtful and insightful feedback at critical stages in the writing.”

Bill Gates and Paula Hurd attend the Artistic Gymnastics Women's Team Final during day four of the Paris 2024 Olympic Games at the Paris Arena on July 30, 2024 in Paris, France
(L-R) Paula Hurd and Bill Gates attended the Paris Olympics in July 2024.JEAN CATUFFE/GETTY

News of the couple’s relationship began circulating in 2023, about four years after the death of Hurd’s husband, former Oracle CEO Mark Hurd, and two years after the end of Gates’ marriage.

The pair have often been seen together attending sporting events, including the Laver Cup in September 2022 and last year’s Paris Olympics — and Hurd has also been by the Microsoft co-founder’s side for a number of high-profile celebrations, including Jeff Bezos’ engagement party.

Ending his book on a high note, Gates shared a touching tribute to his children: daughters Jennifer, 28, and Phoebe, 22, and son Rory, 25.

“I want to thank my children,” he wrote in Source Code. “Being your father and watching you grow up has been the greatest joy of my life. As I wrote this book, I thought about how proud your grandparents and great-grandparents would be of the extraordinary people you’ve become.”

Pregnant Jennifer Gates Shares Family Snap with Dad Bill and Sister Phoebe While Attending Wedding
(L-R) Bill Gates with daughters Jennifer and Phoebe.JENNIFER GATES/INSTAGRAM

In an interview ahead of his memoir’s publication, Gates said that his kids were all “glad to read” Source Code — and “they were very nice about it,” too.

“I think it kind of completes the story for them,” he says, sharing that although his daughters and son grew up knowing about their late grandparents, there was so much they never got to experience.

Gates’ mom, Mary Maxwell Gates, died in 1994 before even his eldest child was born, while his dad, William Henry Gates II, who suffered from Alzheimer’s disease and died in 2020, was only able to spend so much time with his grandchildren before his health started to decline.

“They knew how much I loved my dad and viewed him as an incredible role model,” Gates tells PEOPLE, adding that likewise, his children knew that his Gates Foundation “really stems from my parents’ values.”

Bill Gates Memoir Source Code Gates family portrait, WA
Bill Gates with mother Mary Maxwell Gates, dad William H. Gates Sr., and sisters Kristi and Libby.GATES FAMILY

“It’s great for them to get a picture of where they come from,” he adds.

And even though by the time Source Code ends his children still “haven’t emerged yet,” Gates says that his next memoir — he plans to split his story between three books — will take place “during the Microsoft years where I stop working day and night and meet Melinda.”

“That’s where they show up,” he says.

Source Code will be published on Tuesday, Feb. 4.

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