{"id":16888,"date":"2025-10-02T05:35:49","date_gmt":"2025-10-02T05:35:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888"},"modified":"2025-10-02T05:35:49","modified_gmt":"2025-10-02T05:35:49","slug":"lyft-ceo-on-the-time-bill-gates-told-him-he-was-making-the-stupidest-decision-ive-ever-heard-anyone-made","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888","title":{"rendered":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

Before David Risher was tasked with scripting a \u201ccomeback story\u201d for ride-sharing company Lyft<\/a>, he made a career move so audacious that it prompted a direct, and blunt, intervention from Microsoft<\/a> co-founder Bill Gates. In a recent appearance on Fortune<\/em>\u2018s Leadership Next podcast<\/a>, Risher shared the moment Gates told him he was making \u201cthe stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made.\u201d<\/p>\n

\n

The year was 1996, and Risher was enjoying a successful career at Microsoft during the heyday of Windows. In fact, Risher noted he and his wife just had their 30th wedding anniversary, having met \u201con the first day\u201d at Microsoft. He said it was a very formative time for him and his career at a very competitive company.<\/p>\n

But he had been in talks with a man named Jeff Bezos, who was running a brand-new startup called Amazon<\/a>. When Risher decided to leave the tech giant to join the fledgling online retailer, Gates himself sent an email and called him into his office.<\/p>\n

\u201cHe says, \u2018Hold on for a second. You mean to tell me you\u2019re leaving this company for some tiny, little internet bookstore that nobody\u2019s ever heard of \u2026 that has got to be the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made,’\u201d Risher recalled.<\/p>\n

While Risher admitted the move wasn\u2019t \u201centirely rational,\u201d he said he was drawn to the opportunity. He had first connected with Bezos a year earlier, when the Amazon founder was conducting a reference check. What ultimately convinced Risher to take the leap was Bezos\u2019s intense focus on the customer. \u201cHe was very customer-obsessed,\u201d Risher said, noting Bezos\u2019s logic that on the internet, \u201ceveryone is one click away from somebody else, so you have to create a great customer experience.\u201d (In fact, Bezos\u2019s management style stressed to Amazonians that they should approach every day from a \u201cday one<\/a>\u201d mindset.)<\/p>\n

Bezos also laid out a compellingly ambitious vision: to grow the then-$15.6 million business into a billion-dollar company by the year 2000. Risher, an avid reader, was captivated by the chance to build something new at the \u201ccrazy intersection of technology and culture.\u201d He joined Amazon as its 37th employee, tasked with helping build the \u201ceverything store\u201d by adding music, video, and toy categories. The company hit its billion-dollar target a year early, in 1999. The move paid off so well that a \u201cThank You\u201d letter from Bezos to Risher, dated February 2002, remains on Amazon\u2019s website to this day<\/a>.<\/p>\n

One of the great comebacks<\/h2>\n

Now, as CEO of Lyft, Risher is applying that same foundational principle of customer obsession to engineer what he hopes will be \u201cone of the world\u2019s great comeback stories.\u201d He said when he took the job in 2023<\/a>, the company had \u201clost its way\u201d a little bit, as it was losing market share, and it wasn\u2019t profitable. (Lyft stock is down roughly 20% over the last five years, but has risen 60% year-to-date.) Risher\u2019s strategy has been to return to the basics: understanding what customers actually want.<\/p>\n

To achieve this, he famously works \u201cundercover\u201d as a Lyft driver in Napa Valley and San Francisco to learn firsthand about the rider and driver experience. A conversation with a passenger stressed by variable pricing led directly to the creation of Lyft\u2019s \u201cPrice Lock\u201d feature. He insists on viewing drivers as customers, too, which led to a 70% earnings guarantee\u2014ensuring drivers always receive at least 70% of what riders pay, a move that has given Lyft a 19-point advantage in driver preference over competitors.<\/p>\n

This obsessive focus on improving the service is part of Risher\u2019s fight against what he calls \u201censhittification,\u201d borrowing the phrase from Cory Doctorow that was named the \u201cword of the year\u201d by both an Australian dictionary<\/a> and the American Dialect Society<\/a> for how it summed up widespread frustration with the tech sector, even with modern life. Risher described it as the gravitational pull that makes services worse over time due to profit and investor pressures. By breaking down problems piece by piece, his team has drastically improved the user experience, cutting the driver cancellation rate from a \u201csuper irritating\u201d 15% down to below 5%.<\/p>\n

From receiving a stark warning from a tech titan to earning a permanent thank-you from another, Risher\u2019s unconventional career has been defined by taking on ambitious challenges. Now, he\u2019s betting that the same customer-first philosophy that turned a small online bookstore into a global empire can drive Lyft\u2019s next chapter of growth.<\/p>\n

For this story,\u00a0<\/em>Fortune\u00a0used generative AI to help with an initial draft. An editor verified the accuracy of the information before publishing.\u00a0<\/em><\/p>\n<\/div>\n

Fortune Global Forum<\/strong> returns Oct. 26\u201327, 2025 in Riyadh. CEOs and global leaders will gather for a dynamic, invitation-only event shaping the future of business. Apply for an invitation.<\/a><\/div>\n\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

Before David Risher was tasked with scripting a \u201ccomeback story\u201d for ride-sharing company Lyft, he made a career move so audacious that it prompted a direct, and blunt, intervention from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. In a recent appearance on Fortune\u2018s Leadership Next podcast, Risher shared the moment Gates told him he was making \u201cthe stupidest […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":135,"featured_media":16889,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_uag_custom_page_level_css":"","_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_feature_clip_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false},"categories":[123],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-16888","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-business"],"yoast_head":"\nLyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Unlock Informed Choices with Us\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"2048\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1365\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Nick Lichtenberg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Nick Lichtenberg\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"4 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Nick Lichtenberg\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85\"},\"headline\":\"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888\"},\"wordCount\":818,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg\",\"articleSection\":[\"Business\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888\",\"name\":\"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg\",\"datePublished\":\"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85\"},\"description\":\"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2025\\\/10\\\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg\",\"width\":2048,\"height\":1365},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?p=16888#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/\",\"name\":\"Topat10.com\",\"description\":\"Your Trusted Source for Honest Reviews on the Best Online Services, Products, and Websites \u2013 Unlock Informed Choices with Us\",\"alternateName\":\"Topat10\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85\",\"name\":\"Nick Lichtenberg\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Nick Lichtenberg\"},\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/topat10.com\\\/?author=135\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us","description":"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us","og_description":"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.","og_url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888","og_site_name":"Unlock Informed Choices with Us","article_published_time":"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00","og_image":[{"width":2048,"height":1365,"url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","type":"image\/jpeg"}],"author":"Nick Lichtenberg","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Nick Lichtenberg","Est. reading time":"4 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888"},"author":{"name":"Nick Lichtenberg","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85"},"headline":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019","datePublished":"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888"},"wordCount":818,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","articleSection":["Business"],"inLanguage":"en","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888","url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888","name":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019 | Unlock Informed Choices with Us","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","datePublished":"2025-10-02T05:35:49+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85"},"description":"The year was 1996, and Gates called his star employee into his office.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","contentUrl":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","width":2048,"height":1365},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?p=16888#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Lyft CEO on the time Bill Gates told him he was making \u2018the stupidest decision I\u2019ve ever heard anyone made\u2019"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/#website","url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/","name":"Topat10.com","description":"Your Trusted Source for Honest Reviews on the Best Online Services, Products, and Websites \u2013 Unlock Informed Choices with Us","alternateName":"Topat10","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/#\/schema\/person\/c128604aee74282ae2835f671e8f2d85","name":"Nick Lichtenberg","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Nick Lichtenberg"},"url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?author=135"}]}},"uagb_featured_image_src":{"full":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg",2048,1365,false],"thumbnail":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-150x150.jpg",150,150,true],"medium":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-300x200.jpg",300,200,true],"medium_large":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-768x512.jpg",768,512,true],"large":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1024x683.jpg",1024,683,true],"1536x1536":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1536x1024.jpg",1536,1024,true],"2048x2048":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg",2048,1365,false],"mailpoet_newsletter_max":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1320x880.jpg",1320,880,true],"woocommerce_thumbnail":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-380x380.jpg",380,380,true],"woocommerce_single":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1000x1365.jpg",1000,1365,true],"woocommerce_gallery_thumbnail":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-120x120.jpg",120,120,true],"shareblock_justify":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-800x533.jpg",800,533,true],"shareblock_small":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-120x120.jpg",120,120,true],"shareblock_largeslider":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1920x1280.jpg",1920,1280,true],"shareblock_featurelarge":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-1000x650.jpg",1000,650,true],"shareblock_midlarge":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-760x600.jpg",760,600,true],"shareblock_slidergrid":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-500x350.jpg",500,350,true],"shareblock_featurelist":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-500x368.jpg",500,368,true],"shareblock_featuresmall":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-450x450.jpg",450,450,true],"shareblock_justify_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x13.jpg",20,13,true],"shareblock_small_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x20.jpg",20,20,true],"shareblock_largeslider_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x13.jpg",20,13,true],"shareblock_featurelarge_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x13.jpg",20,13,true],"shareblock_slidergrid_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x14.jpg",20,14,true],"shareblock_midlarge_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x16.jpg",20,16,true],"shareblock_featurelist_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x15.jpg",20,15,true],"shareblock_featuresmall_sload":["https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935-20x20.jpg",20,20,true]},"uagb_author_info":{"display_name":"Nick Lichtenberg","author_link":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/?author=135"},"uagb_comment_info":0,"uagb_excerpt":"Before David Risher was tasked with scripting a \u201ccomeback story\u201d for ride-sharing company Lyft, he made a career move so audacious that it prompted a direct, and blunt, intervention from Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates. In a recent appearance on Fortune\u2018s Leadership Next podcast, Risher shared the moment Gates told him he was making \u201cthe stupidest…","jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_featured_media_url":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2025\/10\/GettyImages-2003236935.jpg","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16888","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/135"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=16888"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/16888\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/16889"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=16888"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=16888"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/topat10.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=16888"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}