Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates acknowledged this week that he had two affairs with Russian women during his marriage to Melinda French Gates and issued an apology to staff at his foundation over his association with convicted sex offender Jeffrey Epstein, as reported by The New York Post.

Gates, 70, addressed employees during a town hall meeting on Tuesday at the Gates Foundation, according to the Wall Street Journal.

During the meeting, he confirmed that he had traveled on a private plane with Epstein and spent time with him in the United States and abroad. He said he did not engage in any criminal conduct.

“I did nothing illicit. I saw nothing illicit,” Gates said in the town hall meeting. “To be clear, I never spent any time with the victims, the women around him.”

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Gates first met Epstein in 2011, after Epstein’s Florida conviction for procuring a child for prostitution. Despite that conviction, Gates continued to socialize with Epstein, even as concerns were raised by Melinda French Gates.

The billionaire has previously denied wrongdoing in connection with his ties to Epstein.

However, during the town hall, he disclosed details about extramarital relationships during his 27-year marriage to French Gates, who filed for divorce in 2021.

“I did have affairs, one with a Russian bridge player who met me at bridge events, and one with a Russian nuclear physicist who I met through business activities,” he told staffers.

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One of the women, Russian bridge player Mila Antonova, had previously been linked to Gates in media reports.

Epstein had met Antonova while attempting to secure financial backing for a bridge academy and later paid for her to attend a software coding school.

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Conceptual editorial image showing U.S. President Donald Trump and Jeffrey Epstein on the screen. For editorial use only. New York U.S 24.07.2025

Gates met Antonova in 2010 during a bridge tournament in which they were both competing.

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In a July 4, 2013, email to Boris Nikolic, Gates’ chief advisor for science and technology, Epstein referenced two women with whom he alleged Gates had affairs.

In the email, Epstein warned that the women risked “becoming overnight sensations.”

“Bill risks going from richest man to biggest hypocrite, Melinda a laughing stock, pledges will disappear as a result,” Epstein told Nikolic.

Weeks later, Epstein sent what appeared to be a “resignation” email to himself, seemingly written as if it were from Nikolic.

“During the past few weeks, I have been caught up in a severe marital dispute between Melinda and Bill,” the email said.

The email suggested that Nikolic had helped Gates obtain medication “in order to deal with the consequences of sex with Russian girls.” Nikolic later stated that the emails were not written on his behalf or at his request.

At the town hall, Gates acknowledged traveling with Epstein to locations including New York, Germany, France, and Washington, but said he never visited Epstein’s private island.

He also addressed his former wife’s concerns.

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“To give her credit, she was always kind of skeptical about the Epstein thing,” he said.

Gates apologized to foundation employees for the fallout surrounding his relationship with Epstein.

“I apologize to other people who are drawn into this because of the mistake I made,” he said. “It definitely is the opposite of the values of the Foundation and the goals of the Foundation.”

A spokesperson for the organization said Gates “spoke candidly” and “took responsibility for his actions.”

In a 2025 interview with the Wall Street Journal, Gates described his decision to associate with Epstein as misguided.

“I thought it would help me with global health philanthropy. In fact, it failed to do that. It was just a huge mistake,” he told the Journal in 2025.

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