Bill Gates Was 'Worried' to Ask Daughter Phoebe to Be in Netflix Show, but Their Conversation Was His ‘Favorite’

Mar. 15, 2025

Bill Gates and Phoebe Gates.Photo:Michael Loccisano/Getty

Michael Loccisano/Getty

Bill Gateslearned a lot while working on his new Netflix show — but he says his conversation withdaughter Phoebetook the cake.

To celebrate the release ofWhat’s Next? The Future with Bill Gates, on Wednesday, Sept. 18, the Microsoft co-founder, 68, penned a new post for hisGates Notes blog.

“As you might guess from the title, What’s Next? is a show about the future,”wrotethe billionaire philanthropist. “Each episode focuses on a different challenge: artificial intelligence, climate change, misinformation, disease eradication, and income inequality.”

“It’s hard to pick which discussion I learned the most from. But three conversations will always stand out in my memory: the ones withLady Gaga, SenatorBernie Sanders, and my younger daughter, Phoebe,” Bill wrote.

However, even though it was “fun” to sit down with Gaga and Sanders, Bill confessed that his “favorite conversation for the series took place last fall in New York City with my daughter Phoebe.”

The “proud papa” admitted that initially he was “a little worried about asking her to be in the series.”

“First, I havetwo other amazing children, and I wanted to see if either of them wanted to be a part of the show,” he wrote, referring to daughterJennifer, 28, and sonRory, 25. But, he said “they were happy to let Phoebe take the spotlight.”

The second issue was logistical.

“We needed to film during Phoebe’s senior year of college. She was very busy not only finishing up school but starting her own business and speaking at thefoundation’s Goalkeepers eventlater that same week,” he wrote of his 22-year-old daughter, who has sincegraduated from Stanford Universityand is preparing for the launch of her forthcoming digital platform,Phia.

Bill Gates and Phoebe Gates.Courtesy of Netflix

Courtesy of Netflix

“I’m glad we made it work, though, because our conversation—for the episode on misinformation—turned out to be a series highlight,” he wrote.

During the episode, Bill wrote, his daughter “shared with me specific examples of how bad actors use misinformation and disinformation to disrupt progress.”

In doing so, he wrote that “Phoebe helped me better understand how women online—particularly women who stick up for other women—often face threats to their safety that are intended to make them think twice before they speak out.”

“I’m not exactly a stranger to people being mean to you online, but I have the luxury of (mostly) ignoring what gets said about me,” he wrote. “Phoebe explained how these threats can have a chilling effect on women’s rights activism and shared some thoughtful ideas for how to make the internet a safer place for everyone.”

“Along with running her own company, Phoebe is also an incredible advocate for women’s rights and women’s health,” her father wrote. “She regularly meets with other activists, many of whom have been harassed online in some awful way.”

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As for the other standout conversations?

Bill wrote that even though “being around famous people doesn’t normally affect me,” he “couldn’t help but feel a little nervous” about meeting with Gaga, 38 — especially because of one of her high-profile acting roles.

Lady Gaga and Bill Gates.Rob Liggins/Netflix

Rob Liggins/Netflix

He had similar praise when he spoke about his time speaking with Sanders, 83.

“Several of my friends raised an eyebrow when I told them I was going to meet with him. After all, Sen. Sanders is the first U.S. Senator in history to go on record saying that billionaires shouldn’t exist. How would this discussion go?” he wrote.

In fact, the billionaire’s friends weren’t the only ones surprised to see them together.

“After the filming ended, we both had other meetings in Washington, so we walked downstairs together and out to our waiting cars. On the sidewalk, a passing jogger saw Sen. Sanders and shouted, ‘Bernie!’ Then, noticing me, he did a double take and yelled, ‘Holy s—, Bill Gates!’ Which made both of us laugh,” he wrote. “I guess we were an unexpected duo.”

What’s Next? The Future with Bill Gates.Courtesy of Netflix

Speakingwith PEOPLE ahead of the show’s release, Bill said that being a part of the Netflix show gave him a “real chance to talk about topics that I care about and I have views on, and I learned a lot."

“My goal for the show is for it to inspire more people to have conversations about these important topics,” he wrote in his latest blog post. “There is no doubt that there are scary things going on, and it feels like change is coming rapidly. But we shouldn’t underestimate what happens when people work together and focus on a problem.”

“I’m confident that brilliant people—especially young people—will step up with great solutions. The key is to get engaged in the issues. They’re simply too important to just get pessimistic or put our heads in the sand,” he added. “These are global problems, and we should talk to each other about them. It’s a critical time, but if we engage, there is a path to progress.”

What’s Next? The Future with Bill Gatesis currently streaming on Netflix.

source: people.com