Microsoft investigated Gates before he left board, according to report By The Associated Press The Associated Press,Updated May 16, 2021, 1 hour ago Email to a Friend Bill Gates, billionaire and co-chair of the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation, paused during a panel session on the opening day of the World Economic Forum (WEF) in Davos, Switzerland, on Jan. 22, 2019.Jason Alden/Bloomberg NEW YORK (AP) â Board members at Microsoft Corp. made a decision in 2020 that it wasnât appropriate for its co-founder Bill Gates to continue sitting on its board as they investigated the billionaireâs prior romantic relationship with a female Microsoft employee that was deemed inappropriate, according to a report in The Wall Street Journal.