{"id":15805,"date":"2026-02-01T13:28:26","date_gmt":"2026-02-01T13:28:26","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/how-do-bill-gates-and-jeffrey-epstein-know-each-other-what-theyve-said\/"},"modified":"2026-02-01T13:28:26","modified_gmt":"2026-02-01T13:28:26","slug":"how-do-bill-gates-and-jeffrey-epstein-know-each-other-what-theyve-said","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/diyhaven858.wasmer.app\/index.php\/how-do-bill-gates-and-jeffrey-epstein-know-each-other-what-theyve-said\/","title":{"rendered":"How Do Bill Gates and Jeffrey Epstein Know Each Other? What They’ve Said"},"content":{"rendered":"


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Former Microsoft CEO Bill Gates<\/strong> has chalked up his friendship with late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein<\/strong> as a \u201chuge mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

The New York Times<\/em> reported that Gates began a friendship with the disgraced financier in 2011, which was three years after Epstein pleaded guilty to procuring a child for prostitution and soliciting a prostitute. (Epstein was sentenced to 18 months behind bars but was ultimately released in 2010 after completing the end of his sentence on home confinement.)<\/p>\n

Bill\u2019s relationship with Epstein came under new scrutiny when the financier died by suicide at age 66 in August 2019 following his arrest on federal sex crimes charges. The tech mogul\u2019s marriage to Melinda French Gates<\/strong> ended two years later \u2014 and she subsequently told CBS News that her estranged husband\u2019s connection to Epstein was a particular sticking point.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s not one thing [that led to the split], it was many things. But I did not like that he\u2019d had meetings with Jeffrey Epstein,\u201d Melinda revealed in March 2022. \u201cI made that clear to him.\u201d<\/p>\n

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Related: <\/span>Giants Co-Owner Steve Tisch Breaks Silence After Appearing in Epstein Files<\/span>
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\n\t\t\tNew York Giants co-owner Steve Tisch broke his silence after he was connected to the late disgraced financier and convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein. \u201cWe had a brief association where we exchanged emails about adult women, and in addition, we discussed movies, philanthropy, and investments,\u201d Tisch said of his relationship with Epstein in a Friday, [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

The Epstein connection resurfaced in 2026 when Bill vehemently denied the veracity of emails where Epstein allegedly claimed that the Microsoft billionaire contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI) from \u201cRussian girls.\u201d (The emails were unsealed by the Justice Department along with 100 new photos on January 30, 2026, in compliance with the passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.)<\/p>\n

Keep scrolling for more about what Gates has said about his friendship with Epstein over the years.\n<\/p>\n

Bill Gates Admitted He \u2018Certainly\u2019 Had Concerns About His Relationship With Jeffrey Epstein<\/h2>\n

Anderson Cooper<\/strong> pointed out during an August 2021 segment with Bill Gates on CNN that Melinda French Gates first met with divorce lawyers around the time the Jeffrey Epstein scandal resurfaced in 2019.<\/p>\n

The CNN reporter later quizzed Bill over whether he ever had any \u201cconcerns\u201d about his ties to the convicted sex offender at the time.<\/p>\n

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\n Bill Gates in January 2026.<\/span> Getty Images\/Stefan JERREVANG \/ TT News Agency \/ AFP<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cOh, certainly,\u201d Bill confirmed.<\/p>\n

Bill then clarified that his \u201crelationship [with Epstein] ended\u201d when he realized that the disgraced financier could not follow through on promises of raising billions for The Gates Foundation.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt was a huge mistake to spend time with him, to give him the credibility of being there,\u201d Bill admitted. \u201cThere were lots of others in that same situation but I made a mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bill Gates Shared His Regret Over His Friendship With Jeffrey Epstein<\/h2>\n

During a September 2021 interview with Judy Woodruff<\/strong> on PBS NewsHour<\/em>, Bill Gates was grilled about the nature of his ties to Jeffrey Epstein.<\/p>\n

\u201cI had dinners with him,\u201d Bill acknowledged. \u201cI regret doing that.\u201d<\/p>\n

According to Bill, Epstein had promised to leverage his relationships with \u201cpeople he said would give to global health,\u201d which is one of the tech executive\u2019s prominent charitable focuses.<\/p>\n

\u201cThose meetings were a mistake. They didn\u2019t result in what he purported and I cut them off. That goes back a long time ago now,\u201d he insisted. \u201cThere\u2019s nothing new on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

When Woodruff countered that there were reports of her guest meeting with Epstein over \u201cseveral years,\u201d Bill shook his head in disagreement.<\/p>\n

\u201cI\u2019ve said I regretted having those dinners,\u201d he insisted. \u201cThere\u2019s absolutely nothing new on that.\u201d<\/p>\n

Asked if there was any lesson to be learned, Bill retorted, \u201cWell, he\u2019s dead so, in general, you always have to be careful.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bill Gates Said Jeffrey Epstein Was Not Honest About His Background<\/h2>\n

Bill Gates accused Jeffrey Epstein of trying to downplay the severity of his 2008 conviction while discussing the scandal with Savannah Guthrie<\/strong> on Today<\/em> in 2024. Guthrie pointed out that Bill first met with Epstein after the convicted criminal already served his prison sentence.<\/p>\n

\u201cI didn\u2019t realize that meeting with him almost downplayed the incredibly awful things he did,\u201d Bill said. \u201cI learned more about that over time but I\u2019d add that to the list of big mistakes.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bill confirmed that his ex-wife Melinda French Gates discouraged him from getting involved with Epstein at the time.<\/p>\n

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Law Enforcement via Getty Images<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cMelinda\u2019s advice was sound and I should have followed it sooner than I did,\u201d he acknowledged.<\/p>\n

Bill denied that he ever personally witnessed Epstein doing anything inappropriate.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe was a bad person and I had a reason I thought those meetings would lead to something good,\u201d he said. \u201cBut I shouldn\u2019t have done them.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bill Gates Called Himself \u2018Quite Stupid\u2019 For Spending Time With Jeffrey Epstein<\/h2>\n

In a January 2025 interview with The Wall Street Journal<\/em>, Bill Gates offered insight on how Jeffrey Epstein gained influence with the wealthy and powerful.<\/p>\n

\u201cIn retrospect, I was foolish to spend any time with him. And he, sort of, got time with various people by spending time with other people,\u201d Gates recalled. \u201cSo yes, I think I was quite stupid. I thought it would help me with global health philanthropy. In fact, it failed to do that, it was just a huge mistake.\u201d<\/p>\n

Bill said that his experience with Epstein \u201cdefinitely\u201d made him more skeptical about whom he met with later on.<\/p>\n

Bill Gates Denied Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s Allegation That He Got an STI From \u2018Russian Girls\u2019<\/h2>\n

A spokesperson for Bill Gates strenuously denied there was any truth to Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s allegations that the Microsoft billionaire contracted a sexually transmitted infection (STI) from \u201cRussian girls.\u201d<\/p>\n

Controversy over Bill\u2019s past with Epstein was renewed in January 2026 following the Justice Department\u2019s release of 3 million new documents and 100 photos obtained from Epstein\u2019s estate. The Justice Department published the documents to comply with the 2025 passage of the Epstein Files Transparency Act.<\/p>\n

In one January 2013 email \u2014 purportedly written by Epstein to Bill \u2014 the sex offender accused the former Microsoft executive of \u201cdisregard[ing] our friendship\u201d and complained about being told that he\u2019d \u201cengaged in morally inappropriate behavior\u201d by one of Bill\u2019s associates.<\/p>\n

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Related: <\/span>Newly Released Epstein Photos Feature Donald Trump, Woody Allen and More<\/span>
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\n\t\t\tPresident Donald Trump, Woody Allen, former President Bill Clinton and Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor are all seen in newly released photos obtained from the late convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein\u2019s estate. On Friday, December 12, Democrats on the House Oversight Committee released 19 archival photos, of more than 95,000 total images, recovered from Epstein\u2019s estate as part [\u2026]\t\t<\/p>\n<\/div>\n

\u201cTo add insult to the injury you then subsequently with tears in your eyes, implore me to please delete the emails regarding your std, your request that I provide you antibiotics that you can surreptitiously give to Melinda, and the description of your penis,\u201d he wrote later in the email.<\/p>\n

In response, Bill\u2019s representative told People<\/em>, \u201cThese claims are absolutely absurd and completely false. The only thing these documents demonstrate is Epstein\u2019s frustration that he did not have an ongoing relationship with Gates and the lengths he would go to entrap and defame.\u201d<\/p>\n

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