Microsoft confirms it investigated "intimate relationship" Gates had with employee

Microsoft launched an internal investigation into its co-founder and long-time board member Bill Gates after an unnamed person brought forth allegations of Gates having an "intimate relationship with a company employee," the tech giant confirmed Monday. 

The alleged incident happened more than 20 years ago, Microsoft said in a statement to CBS MoneyWatch on Monday. The company said it hired an outside law firm in the second half of 2019 to conduct the investigation and "provided extensive support to the employee who raised the concern." In March 2020, Gates announced his departure from the company's governing board, saying he was stepping down to focus on his work at the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Microsoft didn't release further details about the investigation in its statement and the company did not comment on what led to Gates' decision to leave the board.