From DOS to Copilot: 50 Years of Microsoft
1975
The US Department of Justice files what will be a successful antitrust lawsuit against Microsoft.
Apple sues Microsoft for allegedly stealing the Mac interface, but ultimately loses the suit.
Microsoft partners with IBM to make an operating system.
Bill Gates and Paul Allen write an interpreter of the programming language Basic for the first microcomputer and start Micro-Soft.
Gates writes his “Internet Tidal Wave” memo, which mobilizes the company. Windows 95 launches with the Internet Explorer browser bundled in. The internet portal MSN launches.
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1980
1985
1988
Gates, with Steve Jobs at his side, announces Microsoft Excel for the Macintosh. Excel will become a pillar of the company’s GUI-based Office suite.
1995
1998
Gates steps down as CEO and Steve Ballmer assumes the role.
2000
Xbox comes out as Microsoft’s entry into the console gaming market.
2001
Microsoft releases Zune, its ill-fated answer to Apple’s iPod.
2006
After years of delay, the Vista operating system comes out, to much criticism. Ballmer predicts that Apple’s iPhone will flop.
2007
Gates leaves to run his foundation full-time. Microsoft offers to buy Yahoo for nearly $45 billion but gets spurned (lucky for Microsoft).
2008
Windows Azure, the cloud service provider, officially comes out.
2010
Satya Nadella becomes CEO.
2014
Microsoft buys LinkedIn for $26 billion.
2016
Nadella brokers the company’s first investment, of $1 billion, in OpenAI.
2019
Microsoft acquires GitHub for $7.5 billion.
Microsoft announces it will acquire Activision for $68.7 billion.
2022
ChatGPT-powered Bing sends the AI arms race into overdrive.
2023
Microsoft tops $3 trillion and becomes the world’s most valuable company–at least for a while.
2024
Yusuf Mehdi, executive VP and consumer chief marketing officer, unveiled the new Bing as search, browsing, and chat all in one.
2018
