Bill Gates is once again addressing his past association with Jeffrey Epstein, describing the meetings as a serious error in judgment while insisting the relationship centered on philanthropy and never involved women or visits to Epstein’s private island.
Speaking in an interview with The Atlantic published Thursday, Gates said Epstein caught his attention by presenting himself as someone capable of convincing wealthy individuals to commit enormous sums of money to global health projects.
“It just underscored how foolish I was not to have better judgment, even though my intent was philanthropic,” Gates said. “There was never any social thing. I never went to the island. I was never introduced to any women. But I’ve learned a lot from that.”
According to Gates, Epstein knew exactly what kind of proposal would interest him: the possibility of securing billions of dollars from other billionaires for health initiatives.
“He definitely had connections with billionaires, a lot of them. And, you know, in a sense, you could say he found my weak point,” Gates said. “That by saying he could get tens of billions or 100 billions that would be donated to global health causes, that raised my interest.”
Premium cringe: Bill Gates tries more Epstein damage control
“There was never any social thing… I was never introduced to to any women.”
“In a sense, you could say he found my weak point.”
“I thought he had served [his] time, just like all sorts of ex-convicts that the… pic.twitter.com/YXJ5fVZgNT
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) August 27, 2026
The meetings remain controversial in large part because they began years after Epstein had already been convicted of a sex offense involving a minor. Gates said he was aware of that conviction at the time but viewed Epstein as someone who had gone through the criminal justice system and completed his punishment.
“I thought he had, you know, served the time, just like, you know, all sorts of ex-convicts that the foundation works with in trying to get them back into the labor market,” Gates explained. “I thought the justice system had worked.”
That explanation does not change the timeline. Gates reportedly began meeting with Epstein around 2011, after Epstein’s conviction for soliciting prostitution from a minor. Their contacts reportedly included multiple discussions about possible global health projects. Gates visited Epstein’s Manhattan residence and also flew aboard Epstein’s private jet.
The relationship has continued to draw scrutiny as additional details have emerged over the years.
In June, Gates said Epstein had learned about his extramarital affairs and subsequently attempted to use that information to blackmail him. That added another dimension to an association Gates has repeatedly characterized as a mistake.
Gates has denied participating in Epstein’s crimes, and his latest comments again draw a firm distinction between his meetings with Epstein and Epstein’s sexual activities. His account is that the connection was built around a proposed philanthropic opportunity that never delivered what Epstein had suggested.
