Bill Gates explains why he didn't fund daughter Phoebe's new Phia shopping app: 'I probably would have been overly nice but...'

Microsoft co-founder and former CEO Bill Gates seems to be ‘happy’ about not having to fund her daughter Phoebe Gates’s new shopping app. In a recent interview, the billionaire philanthropist opened up about being wary of investing in his and ex-wife Melinda Gates' youngest child’s new business venture. Gates admitted he deliberately chose not to fund his daughter Phoebe’s AI-powered shopping app, Phia, explaining that otherwise he’d have ended up supervising the business too closely. Instead of serving as an investor, he provided Phoebe with guidance on personnel issues and left the funding to others. Last month on Raj Shamani’s podcast, Gates also revealed that he gave his children “less than 1 per cent” of his total wealth, which is still multimillions, to encourage them to carve their paths.

In an interview published by the New York Times, soon after Phia’s web browser and app went live, Gates said: “I thought, ‘Oh boy, she’s going to come and ask.”
Gates highlighted that he probably would have helped fund his daughter’s venture, but “then I would have kept her on a short leash and be doing business reviews, which I would have found tricky, and I probably would have been overly nice, but wondered if it was the right thing to do? Luckily, it never happened.”
Instead, Phoebe relied on her father for guidance, primarily on personnel issues, Gates noted.
“When it comes to shopping, I’m not exactly the target audience,” Gates added.
Talking about Phoebe, Gates also said that her youngest daughter is “the most different than I am.”
“Because she’s so good with people. When we would go on family vacations, we would find some part of the beach to just be off on our own, and Phoebe would go down the beach and meet people and bring them back to introduce them to us,” Gates explained.
This comes after Phoebe teamed up with her former Stanford roommate and climate activist Sophia Kianni to launch Phia, a free AI-driven shopping app. The app will allow users to compare prices from over 40,000 retailers and secondhand platforms to find the best deals.
The app’s standout features, the “Should I Buy This?” button and tailored preferences, are designed to simplify the shopping process while encouraging sustainability.
In related news, Bill Gates gifted his daughter Jennifer a $15.82 million horse farm in North Salem as a graduation present. The property includes equestrian facilities to support Jennifer’s interest in competitive horse riding. The purchase drew attention as it appeared to contrast with Melinda Gates’ earlier comments about raising their children with modest values, prompting discussions about wealth and family priorities.