Bill Gates appeared voluntarily behind closed doors before House Oversight Committee investigators on Wednesday to answer questions about his relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, part of a larger turn in his image that has been rippling through the Seattle-area institutions he built and funds.
In a statement in advance of his testimony, the Microsoft co-founder gave his most detailed public account yet of the relationship, saying he was introduced to Epstein in 2011 on the promise of raising billions for global health and cut off contact in late 2014. He said he should never have met with Epstein, calling the decision a “grave error in judgment” that put his work in global health and philanthropy at risk.
“If the time I spent with Epstein lent him any credibility, I am deeply sorry,” he said. “I have learned a significant lesson and am now far more careful about who I engage with even in a limited capacity.”
Gates also addressed the marital infidelity that surfaced in the files, saying Epstein learned of it and tried to use it as leverage to draw him back in, without success. Gates acknowledged two affairs with Russian women at a Gates Foundation town hall in February, the Wall Street Journal previously reported.
A Gates spokesperson said via email that he “welcomes the opportunity to appear before the Committee. While he never witnessed or participated in any of Epstein’s illegal conduct, he is looking forward to answering all the committee’s questions to support their important work.”
The Gates Foundation, which he chairs, said it commissioned an external review earlier this year to assess its past engagement with Epstein and its vetting of new partners. CEO Mark Suzman told employees at a February town hall that he felt “somewhat sullied” by the association and that it had made the foundation’s mission more challenging, according to the Journal.
The foundation has said it “regrets having any employees interact with him in any way.”
TerraPower, the Bellevue-based nuclear energy company Gates founded and chairs, held an all-hands meeting where employees raised questions about Epstein’s ties to both Gates and Nathan Myhrvold, the former Microsoft chief technology officer, who co-founded TerraPower and serves as its vice chairman.
The Journal also reported that Breakthrough Energy, his climate-investment firm, has struggled to raise a new fund, with some investors citing the Epstein connection.
Gates did not take part in Microsoft’s CEO Summit this year, and a dinner he typically hosts at his home in connection with the event did not take place. “While it didn’t work out this year, we’ve already extended an invitation for Bill to attend the CEO Summit next year,” a Microsoft spokesman told the Journal.
On Capitol Hill today, Gates appeared for a transcribed interview rather than public testimony, and a transcript is expected to be released in the coming days. He has not been charged with a crime or accused of wrongdoing by Epstein’s victims.
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