Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has published the source code for Altair BASIC, the first product that marked the beginning of the tech giant’s journey. In a post on his blog, Gates Notes, Gates reflected on the significance of this milestone in the company’s history.
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Before the advent of products like Office, Windows 95, Xbox, or AI, there was Altair BASIC. In 1975, Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft with the vision of placing a computer on every desk and in every home. Describing Altair BASIC as the coolest code he's ever written, Gates highlighted its pivotal role in the company's origins. He and Allen were inspired to create the BASIC interpreter after seeing the cover of the January 1975 issue of Popular Electronics magazine, which featured the Altair 8800 microcomputer developed by MITS.
The duo reached out to MITS, the manufacturer of the Altair 8800, proposing the development of a BASIC interpreter for the device. Their goal was to enable users to write their own programs for the Altair 8800 more easily. Gates and Allen dedicated countless sleepless nights to developing the code, which they had already disclosed to MITS. This effort resulted in the creation of Altair BASIC, the first product of the company initially named Micro-Soft. As Gates noted, they later dropped the hyphen.
In his reflections, Gates also expressed gratitude to the leaders and employees who have contributed to Microsoft’s success over the decades. He remarked, that five decades later, Microsoft continues to invent new ways to make life easier and work more productive. Gates noted that surviving 50 years is a huge accomplishment, and they couldn’t have done it without leaders like Steve Ballmer and Satya Nadella, as well as the many people who have worked at Microsoft over the years.
The source code for Altair BASIC is now available for viewing in PDF format via the following link: gatesnotes.com. The original story is here.
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