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He has announced that he plans to 'transition out' of his role by July 2008 although he will remain as the non-executive Chairman of the company he founded in 1975.

Gates, the world's richest man with an estimated fortune of around $50 billion, is to turn his attention to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation which is estimated to give around $1 billion a year to charity projects that include educational scholarships and computer donations to schools in the United States. However most of the money goes to funding healthcare initiatives in the developing world.

He has previously declared that he intends to give away his entire fortune before he dies. With a personal wealth as large as his, he has decided that is a full time job.

His position as Chief Software

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Architect is being taken over by Ray Ozzie who is currently the company's Chief Technical Officer while Steve Ballmer remains as CEO in charge of the day to day running of the business. Craig Mundie, formerly Microsoft chief technical officer of advanced strategies and policy, gets a new title of Chief Research and Strategy officer and will work closely with Gates during the transition period to take responsibility for the company's research and development.

Bill Gates has been gradually handing over the reins at Microsoft for some years. In January 2000, Gates took on the role of chief software architect while Ballmer assumed the role of CEO. With the upcoming flurry of products from the software giant ranging from new versions of all of its operating systems, server software and office applications in the next year, Gates feels this is a good time to step down and prepare for the transition period.

Announcing the change Bill Gates said in a statement, 'This was a hard decision for me. I'm very lucky to have two passions that I feel are so important and so challenging. As I prepare for this change, I firmly believe the road ahead for Microsoft is as bright as ever.'

Pictured from left to right are: Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates, Chief Research and Strategy Officer Craig Mundie, Chief Software Architect Ray Ozzie and CEO Steve Ballmer.