Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates recently admitted that he regretted quitting Harvard University to run the software company as its first CEO in 1975. In his new memoir Source Code, the billionaire revealed that he had a “great time” in college, and said that even after he left, he wanted to return to Harvard to complete his degree. “I enjoyed Harvard. I enjoyed the classes, including some that I just sat in on: psychology, economics, history courses. I loved having smart people around. We could sit and talk late into the night about very interesting things,” he told CNBC Make It.

However, Mr Gates said that he was pushed into quitting college after a technological development offered an opportunity that he and his Microsoft co-founder and high school friend Paul Allen had to seize. In his memoir, he recalled that the breakthrough moment came when Mr Allen rushed into his room in 1974, holding a copy of Popular Electronics. The magazine featured a cover story about the Altair 8800, a computer kit that had the potential to revolutionise the industry. 

At the time, Mr Gates and Mr Allen that if they could create a software for computers, they could be at the forefront of a new industry. They also knew that if they had to act quickly.

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So, for two years, Mr Gates tried to balance his academic commitments while also running Microsoft. He even attempted to delegate leadership to another friend and early Microsoft programmer, Ric Weiland, so he could finish his studies. But, Mr Weiland opted to attend graduate school, leaving Mr Gates without a reliable successor. 

“Even Ric wasn’t going to pull things together with the intensity that I knew we needed to stay in front,” Mr Gates recalled. “I had to give in to the inevitable, and give up school and, of course, never go back,” he said. 

So, Mr Gates retained the reins of Microsoft CEO until stepping down in 2000. During his tenure, the company revolutionised the computer industry and made him one of the richest individuals in the world. Today, Microsoft is worth more than $3 trillion, CNBC reported.