Bill Gates and his ex-wife Melinda French share three children, and while the couple is no longer together, they do agree on one thing — not spoiling the children with too much money. Gates is a billionaire, and he had mentioned earlier that his children will inherit only a small amount of his wealth when he passes away.
French also wanted to give their children a rather middle-class upbringing than a billionaire one. However, judging by some of Gates’ interviews and the kind of lavish lifestyle that Jennifer Gates, their eldest daughter, lives, it seems that though Gates will not be passing all his wealth to his children after his passing, he does not see a problem with spoiling them while he is alive.
In a January 2025 interview with The Times, Gates talked about his huge Seattle home in a rather casual way. He said, “My house in Seattle, I admit, is gigantic. My sisters have downsized. I can’t. I like the houses I have. My kids like to come back — that is a luxury. I don’t cook, I don’t make my own bed, but I don’t mind if no one has made it — I wouldn’t notice.”
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His words showed that despite the air of modesty that he maintains, he actually takes his luxurious lifestyle in a matter-of-fact manner. Therefore, it is no wonder that Jennifer also seems out of touch at times, since she has grown up and continues to live with an abundance of wealth.
One example of Gates spoiling Jennifer would be the horse ranch in New York that she was gifted after her graduation from Stanford. The ranch cost around $16 million, as reported by Architectural Digest. While it was a fitting gift, given both Jennifer and her husband Nayel Nassar are professional equestrians, it did not take away the fact that it was a ridiculously expensive present to give to someone after their graduation.
The attention to the monetary value of the gift is important here, as it stands in contradiction to the kind of lifestyle that French allegedly wanted to give their children. When Gates gifted Jennifer the ranch, he and French were still married, and therefore French could possibly not deny being absolutely against this idea.
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Despite enabling the kind of lavish lifestyle that his kids live, Gates has made it clear time and again that leaving them with all his wealth would be a bit too much. Talking to Daily Mail in 2011, when his net worth was around $56 billion, Gates said, “I don’t think that amount of money would be good for them.”
He further emphasized his stance in a 2013 Reddit AMA, as he said, “I definitely think leaving kids massive amounts of money is not a favor to them. … Some people disagree with this but Melinda and I feel good about it.”
While Gates has planned not to leave all his money to his children, he has also mentioned that they would be taken good care of even if they only receive a small amount of his wealth.
