Paul Gardner Allen (January 21, 1953 – October 15, 2018) was an American business magnate, investor, and philanthropist.

He co-founded the technology company Microsoft alongside Bill Gates in 1975. At the time of his death, he was estimated to be the 46th-richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of $20.3 billion, comprising 100 million shares of Microsoft.

Allen was the founder and Chairman of Vulcan Inc., which has managed his various business and philanthropic efforts. He had a multibillion-dollar investment portfolio including technology and media companies, scientific research, real estate holdings, private spaceflight ventures, and stakes in other companies. He owned two professional sports teams: the Seattle Seahawks of the National Football League and the Portland Trail Blazers of the National Basketball Association, and was part-owner of the Seattle Sounders FC, which joined Major League Soccer in 2009.

Allen was the founder of the Allen Institute for Brain Science, Institute for Artificial Intelligence, Institute for Cell Science, and Stratolaunch Systems. He gave more than $2 billion to causes such as education, wildlife and environmental conservation, the arts, healthcare, community services, and more. He received numerous awards and honors in several different professions, and listed among the Time 100 Most Influential People in The World in 2007 and 2008.

Early life

Paul Allen was born on January 21, 1953, in Seattle, Washington, to Kenneth Sam Allen and Edna Faye (née Gardner) Allen.[14] Allen attended Lakeside School, a private school in Seattle, where he befriended Bill Gates, two years younger, with whom he shared an enthusiasm for computers. They used Lakeside's Teletype terminal to develop their programming skills on several time-sharing computer systems. They also used the laboratory of the Computer Science Department of the University of Washington, doing personal research and computer programming; on at least one occasion in 1971 they were banned from the laboratory for abuse of their privileges there. According to Allen, in their teenage years he and Bill Gates would go dumpster diving for computer program code.After graduating and obtaining a perfect SAT score of 1600, Allen went to Washington State University, where he joined Phi Kappa Theta fraternity; after two years, however, he dropped out in order to work as a programmer for Honeywell in Boston, near Harvard University where Bill Gates had ended up. Allen later convinced Gates to drop out of Harvard in order to create Microsoft.

Microsoft

In 1975, in Albuquerque, New Mexico, Allen and Gates began marketing a BASICprogramming language interpreter. Allen came up with the original name of "Micro-Soft," according to a 1995 Fortune magazine article.

In 1980, after Microsoft had committed to deliver IBM a disk operating system (DOS) for the original IBM PC, although they had not yet developed one, Allen spearheaded a deal for Microsoft to purchase QDOS (Quick and Dirty Operating System), written by Tim Paterson, who, at the time, was employed at Seattle Computer Products. As a result of this transaction, Microsoft was able to secure a contract to supply the DOS that would eventually run on IBM's PC line. This contract with IBM proved the watershed in Microsoft history that led to Allen's and Gates' wealth and success. Allen effectively left Microsoft in 1982 after receiving a Hodgkin's lymphoma diagnosis.

Gates reportedly asked Allen to give him some of his shares to compensate for the higher amount of work being performed by Gates.According to Allen, Gates said since he "did almost everything on BASIC", the company should be split 60–40 in his favor. Allen agreed to this arrangement, which Gates later attempted to amend to 64–36. In 1983, Gates tried to buy Allen out at $5 per share; however, Allen refused and left the company with his shares intact. This proved critical to Allen becoming a billionaire after Microsoft went public.

Allen officially resigned from his position on the Microsoft board of directors on November 9, 2000. He remained as a senior strategy advisor to the company's executives.

Business and investments

Financial and technology

• Vulcan Capital is an investment arm of Allen's Seattle-based Vulcan Inc., which manages his personal fortune. In 2013, Allen opened a new Vulcan Capital office in Palo Alto, California, to focus on making new investments in emerging technology and internet companies.
• Patents: Allen holds 43 patents from the United States Patent and Trademark Office.
• Apps: Allen backed A.R.O., the startup behind the mobile app Saga; SportStream, a social app for sports fans; and a content-management app called Fayve.
• Interval Research Corporation: In 1992, Allen and David Liddle co-founded Interval Research Corporation, a Silicon Valley-based laboratory and new business incubator that was dissolved in 2000 after generating over 300 patents,[39] four of which were the subject of Allen's August 2010 patent infringement lawsuit against AOL, Apple, eBay, Facebook, Google, Netflix, Office Depot, OfficeMax, Staples, Yahoo!, and YouTube.
• Ticketmaster: In 1993, Allen invested $243 million to acquire 80% of Ticketmaster. In 1997, Home Shopping Network acquired 47.5% of Allen's stock in exchange for $209 million worth of their own stock.
• Charter Communications: In 1998, Allen bought a controlling interest in Charter Communications. Charter filed for bankruptcy reorganization in 2009, with Allen’s loss estimated at $7 billion. Allen kept a small stake after Charter emerged from reorganization, worth $535 million in 2012. The company's 2016 purchase and subsequent merger of Time Warner Cable with Charter's subsidiary, Spectrum, make Charter Communications the second-largest cable company in the U.S.

Aerospace

Allen confirmed that he was the sole investor behind aerospace engineer and entrepreneur Burt Rutan's Space Ship One suborbital commercial spacecraft on October 4, 2004. The craft was developed and flown by Mojave Aerospace Ventures, which was a joint venture between Allen and Rutan's aviation company, Scaled Composites. SpaceShipOne climbed to an altitude of 377,591 feet (115,090 m) over the Mojave Air and Space Port and was the first privately funded effort to successfully put a civilian in suborbital space. It won the Ansari X Prize competition and received the $10 million prize.

On December 13, 2011, Allen announced the creation of Stratolaunch Systems, based at the Mojave Air and Space Port. Stratolaunch is a proposed orbital launch system consisting of a dual-bodied, 6-engine jet aircraft, capable of carrying a rocket to high altitude; the rocket would then separate from its carrier aircraft and fire its own engines to complete its climb into orbit. If successful, this project would be the first wholly privately funded space transport system. Stratolaunch, which is partnering with Orbital ATK and Scaled Composites, is intended to launch in inclement weather, fly without worrying about the availability of launch pads and to operate from different locations. Stratolaunch plans to ultimately host six to ten missions per year. On April 13, 2015, Vulcan Aerospace was announced. It is the company within Allen's Vulcan Inc. that plans and executes projects to shift how the world conceptualizes space travel through cost reduction and on-demand access.

Real estate

Allen's Vulcan Real Estate division offers development and portfolio management services, and is known for the redevelopment of the South Lake Union neighborhood immediately north of downtown Seattle. Vulcan has developed 6.3 million square feet (590,000 m2) of new residential, office, retail and biotechnology research space, and has a total development capacity of 10,000,000 sq ft (930,000 m2). Vulcan advocated for the Seattle Streetcar line known as South Lake Union Streetcar, which runs from Seattle's Westlake Center to the south end of Lake Union. In 2012, The Wall Street Journal called Allen's South Lake Union investment "unexpectedly lucrative" and one that led to his firm selling a 1,800,000-square-foot (170,000 m2) office complex to Amazon.com for US$1.16 billion, one of the most expensive office deals ever in Seattle. "It's exceeded my expectations," Allen said of the South Lake Union development.

Venues

• Sports and event centers: Allen funded the development of Portland's Moda Center, which he purchased in 2007. He also contributed $130 million to help build CenturyLink Field in Seattle.
• Seattle Cinerama: Allen purchased Seattle's historic Cinerama Theater in 1998, and upgraded it with 3-D capability and digital sound, in addition to interior and exterior refurbishing. The theater installed the world's first commercial digital laser projector in 2014.
• Hospital Club: Allen opened the Hospital Club in London in 2004 as a professional and social hub for people working in the creative arts. A second location in Los Angeles is under construction.

Sports team ownership Portland Trail Blazers

Allen purchased the Portland Trail Blazers NBA team in 1988 from California real estate developer Larry Weinberg for $70 million. He was instrumental in the development and funding of the Moda Center (previously known as the Rose Garden), the arena where the Blazers play. He purchased the arena on April 2, 2007, and stated that this was a major milestone and a positive step for the franchise. Since taking over the franchise, the Allen-owned Trail Blazers have reached the playoffs 19 times including the NBA Finals in 1990 and 1992 (as of December 2017). According to Forbes, the Blazers were valued at $940 million in 2015 and ranked No. 12 out of 30 NBA teams.

Seattle Seahawks

Allen purchased the Seattle Seahawks NFL team in 1996 when former owner Ken Behring threatened to move the Seahawks to Southern California. Herman Sarkowsky, a former Seahawks minority owner, told The Seattle Times about Allen's decision to buy the team, "I'm not sure anybody else in this community would have done what [Allen] did." The Seahawks are valued at $1.33 billion in August 2014 by Forbes, which says the team has "one of the most rabid fan bases in the NFL." Under the helm of Allen, the Seahawks went to the Super Bowl three times winning Super Bowl XLVIII and won three NFC Championships (2005, 2013, 2014).

Seattle Sounders FC Main article: Seattle Sounders FC

Allen's Vulcan Sports & Entertainment is part of the ownership team of the Seattle Sounders FC, a Major League Soccer (MLS) franchise that began play in 2009 at CenturyLink Field, a stadium also controlled by Allen. The ownership team also includes film producer Joe Roth, businessman Adrian Hanauer, and comedian Drew Carey. The Sounders sold out every home game during its first season, setting a new MLS record for average match attendance.

Estate

Following Allen's death, his shares in the sports teams he owned were left to his estate, led by his sister, Jody Allen.

Filmmaking

Allen and his sister Jody Allen together were the owners and executive producers of Vulcan Productions, a television and film production company headquartered in Seattle within the entertainment division of Vulcan Inc. Their films have received various recognition, ranging from a Peabody to Independent Spirit Awards, Grammys and Emmys. In 2014 alone, Allen's film, We The Economy, won 12 awards including a Webby award for best Online News & Politics Series. The films have also been nominated for Golden Globes and Academy Awards among many others. Vulcan Productions' films and documentary projects include Far from Heaven (2002), Hard Candy (2005), Rx for Survival: A Global Health Challenge (2005), Where God Left His Shoes (2006), Judgment Day: Intelligent Design on Tria (2007), This Emotional Life (2010), We The Economy (2014) Racing Extinction (2015) and Oscar-nominated Body Team 12 (2015).

In 2013, Vulcan Productions co-produced the Richard E. Robbins-directed film Girl Rising which tells the stories of girls from different parts of the world who seek an education. Globally over 205 million households watched Girl Rising during the CNN and CNN International premieres, and over 4 million people have engaged with Girl Rising through websites and social media. Through the associated 10x10 program, over $2.1 million has been donated to help girls receive an education worldwide.

Also in 2013, Vulcan Productions signed on as a producing partner of Pandora's Promise,[87] a documentary about nuclear power, directed by Oscar-nominated director Robert Stone. It was released in select theaters nationwide June 12, 2013 and on CNN on November 7, 2013. A variety of college and private screenings as well as panel discussions have been hosted throughout the country.

Philanthropy

Allen gave more than $2 billion towards the advancement of science, technology, education, wildlife conservation, the arts, and community services in his lifetime. The Paul G. Allen Family Foundation was established to administer a portion of Allen's philanthropic contributions. Since its formation, the foundation has given more than $494 million to over 1,500 nonprofits and in 2010, Allen became a signatory of The Giving Pledge, promising to give at least half of his fortune to philanthropic causes. Allen has received commendations for his philanthropic commitments including the Andrew Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy and Inside Philanthropy's "Philanthropist of the Year."

Science and research

In September 2003, Allen launched the Allen Institute for Brain Science with a $100 million contribution dedicated to understanding how the human brain works. In total, Allen donated $500 million to the institute, making it his single largest philanthropic recipient. Since its launch, the Allen Institute for Brain Science has taken a Big Science and Open Science approach to tackle projects. The institute makes research tools available to the scientific community using an open data model. Some of the institute's most notable projects include the Allen Mouse Brain Atlas, Allen Human Brain Atlas and the Allen Mouse Brain Connectivity Atlas. The Allen Institute is also helping to advance and shape the White House's BRAIN Initiative as well as the Human Brain Project.

Founded in 2014, the Allen Institute for Artificial Intelligence (AI2) main focus is to research and engineer artificial intelligence. The Institute is modeled after the Allen Institute for Brain Scienceand led by researcher and professor, Dr. Oren Etzioni. AI2 has undertaken four main projects, Aristo, Semantic Scholar, Euclid and Plato. Project Aristo is working to build an AI system capable of passing an 8th grade science exam.

In December 2014, Allen committed $100 million to create the Allen Institute for Cell Science in Seattle. The institute is investigating and creating a virtual model of cells in the hope of bringing forth treatment of different diseases. Like the institutes before it, all data generated and tools developed will be made publicly available online.

Launched in 2016 with a $100 million commitment, The Paul G. Allen Frontiers Group aims to discover and support ideas at the frontier of bioscience in an effort accelerate the pace of discovery. The group is led by Tom Skalak and will be targeting scientists and research areas that "some might consider out-of-the-box at the very edges of knowledge."

Allen launched the Allen Distinguished Investigators Awards (ADI) in 2010 to support scientists pursuing early-stage research projects who often have difficulty securing funding from traditional sources.

Allen donated the seed money to build SETI's Allen Telescope Array, eventually contributing $30 million to the project.

A flower fly was named after Allen for his contributions to Dipterology, called Paul Allen's flower fly.

Environment and conservation

Allen provided more than $7 million to fund the census, the largest pan-African aerial survey since the 1970s. The Great Elephant Censusteam is flying over 20 countries to survey the African savannah elephants with hopes that the accurate and up-to-date data will spur immediate protective actions and long-term conservation management plans.

He began supporting the University of British Columbia's Sea Around Us Project in 2014 to improve data on global fisheries as a way to fight illegal fishing. Part of his $2.6 million in funding went towards the creation of FishBase, an online database about adult finfish. Allen funded the Global FinPrint initiative, launched in July 2015, a three-year survey of sharks and rays in coral reef areas. The survey is the largest of its kind and designed to provide data to help conservation programs.

Allen backed Washington state initiative 1401 to prohibit the purchase, sale and distribution of products made from 10 endangered species including elephants, rhinos, lions, tigers, leopards, cheetahs, marine turtles, pangolins, sharks and rays. The initiative gained enough signatures to be on the state's ballot on November 3, 2015, and passed.

Alongside the United States Department of Transportation (USDOT), Allen and Vulcan Inc. launched the Smart City Challenge, a contest inviting American cities to transform their transportation systems. Created in 2015 with the USDOT's $40 million commitment as well as $10 million from Allen's Vulcan Inc., the challenge aims to create a first-of-its-kind modern city that will demonstrate how cities can improve quality of life while lowering greenhouse gas emissions. The winning city was Columbus, Ohio.

As a founding member of the International SeaKeepers Society, Allen hosted its proprietary SeaKeeper 1000TM oceanographic and atmospheric monitoring system on all three of his megayachts.

Allen funded the building of microgrids, which are small-scale power grids that can operate independently, in Kenya to help promote reusable energy and empower its businesses and residents. He was an early investor in the Mawingu Networks, a wireless and solar-powered Internet provider which aims to connect rural Africa with the world, and Off Grid Electric, a company focused on providing solar energy to people in emerging nations.

Ebola

In 2014, Allen pledged at least $100 million toward the fight to end the Ebola virus epidemic in West Africa, making him the largest private donor in the Ebola crisis. He also created a website called TackleEbola.org as a way to spread awareness as well as serve as a way donors can fund projects in need. The site additionally highlights organizations working to stop Ebola that Allen supports such as International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, Médecins Sans Frontières, Partners in Health, UNICEF and World Food Program USA. On April 21, 2015, Allen brought together key leaders in the Ebola fight at the Ebola Innovation Summit in San Francisco. The summit aimed to share key learnings and reinforce the need for continued action and support to bring the number of Ebola cases down to zero. As part of his ongoing commitment to end the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, the Paul Allen Foundation partnered with the United States Department of State and MRIGlobal to develop a new first of its kind medevac biocontainment units. These units will be used by the U.S. State Department to help safely evacuate healthcare workers who might fall ill to infectious diseases such as Ebola.

In October 2015, the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation announced it would award seven new grants totaling $11 million to prevent future widespread outbreaks of the virus.

Exploration

In 2012, along with his research team and the Royal Navy, Allen attempted to retrieve the bell from HMS Hood, which sank in the Denmark Strait during World War II, but the attempt failed due to poor weather. On August 7, 2015, they tried again and recovered the bell in very good condition. It was further restored and put on display in May 2016 in the National Museum of the Royal Navy, Portsmouth, in remembrance of the 1,415 crewmen lost.

Since 2015, Allen funded the RV Petrel, which has explored several notable shipwrecks. These include the Japanese battleship Musashi in the Sibuyan Sea off the coast of Romblon, Philippines, and the USS Juneau (CL-52) during an expedition to Guadalcanal.

The arts

Allen established several non-profit community institutions that feature his private collections of historic artifacts. These include:

• Museum of Pop Culture, or MoPOP, is a nonprofit museum, dedicated to contemporary popular culture inside a Frank Gehry-designed building at Seattle Center, established in 2000.
• Flying Heritage Collection, which showcases restored vintage military aircraft and armaments primarily from the World War II era, established in 2004.
• STARTUP Gallery, a permanent exhibit at the New Mexico Museum of Natural History and Science in Albuquerque dedicated to the history of the microcomputer, established in 2007.
• Living Computer: Museum + Labs, a collection of vintage computers in working order and available for interactive sessions on-site or through networked access, opened to the public in 2012.

An active art collector, Allen gifted more than $100 million to support the arts. On October 15, 2012, the Americans for the Arts gave Allen the Eli and Edythe Broad Award for Philanthropy in the Arts. Allen also loaned out more than 300 pieces from his private art collection to 47 different venues. In 2013, Allen sold Barnett Newman's Onement VI (1953) at Sotheby's in New York for $43.8 million, surpassing its estimate of $30 million to $40 million.

In 2015, Allen founded the Seattle Art Fair, a four-day event with 60-plus galleries from around the world including works from the Gagosian Gallery, David Zwirner and many others. The event drew thousands and inspired other satellite fairs throughout the city.

In August 2016, Allen announced the launch of Upstream Music Fest + Summit, an annual festival fashioned after South by Southwest. Held in Pioneer Square, the first festival took place in May 2017.

Education

In 1989, Allen donated $2 million to the University of Washington to construct the Allen Library, which was named after his father Kenneth S. Allen, a former associate director of the University of Washington library system. In the same year, Allen donated an additional $8 million to establish the Kenneth S. Allen Library Endowment. In 2012, the endowment was renamed the Kenneth S. and Faye G. Allen Library Endowment after Allen's mother (a noted bibliophile) died.

In 2002, Allen donated $14 million to the University of Washington to construct the Paul G. Allen Center for Computer Science and Engineering. The building was dedicated in October 2003.

In 2010, Allen announced a gift of $26 million to build the Paul G. Allen School of Global Animal Health at Washington State University, his alma mater. The gift is the largest private donation in the university's history.

In 2016, Allen pledged a $10 million donation over four years for the creation of the Allen Discovery Centers at Tufts University and Stanford University. The centers would fund research that would read and write the morphogenetic code. Over eight years the donation could be as much as $20 million.

In 2017, Allen donated $40 million (with an additional $10 million added by Microsoft) to reorganize the University of Washington's Computer Science and Engineering department into the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science and Engineering.

Personal life

Allen was diagnosed with Stage 1-A Hodgkin's lymphoma in 1982. His cancer was successfully treated by several months of radiation therapy and a bone marrow transplant. Allen was diagnosed with non-Hodgkin lymphoma in 2009. Likewise, the cancer was successfully treated until it returned in October 2018, which would cause his death a few weeks later.

Allen never married and had no children. He was, at times, considered reclusive.

Music

Allen received his first electric guitar at the age of sixteen, and was inspired to play it by listening to Jimi Hendrix. In 2000, Allen played rhythm guitar on the independently-produced and eponymous album Grown Men. In 2013, he had a major label release on Sony's Legacy Recordings; Everywhere at Once by Paul Allen and the Underthinkers. PopMatters.com described Everywhere at Once as "a quality release of blues-rock that's enjoyable from start to finish."

On February 7, 2018, an interview with Quincy Jones was released by the magazine New York on their Vulture website. In this interview, Jones said that he had extreme respect for Eric Clapton, his band Cream, and Allen. Referencing Allen's Hendrix-like play, the article mentioned a jam session on a yacht with Stevie Wonder.

Yachting and underwater exploration

Allen's 414-foot (126 m) yacht, Octopus, launched in 2003. As of 2013, it was 14th in the list of motor yachts by length. The yacht is equipped with two helicopters, a submarine, an ROV, a swimming pool, a music studio and a basketball court.

Allen loaned Octopus for a number of operations. Most notably, Octopus was used in the search for a missing American pilot and two officers whose plane disappeared off Palau and the study of a rare fish called a coelacanth among many others.

Octopus is a member of AMVER, a voluntary group ship reporting system used worldwide by authorities to arrange assistance for those in distress at sea.

The ship is also known for its annual celebrity-studded parties hosted at Cannes film festival, where Allen and his band played for guests. These performances included musicians such as Usher and David A. Stewart.

Allen also owned Tatoosh, which is one of the world's 100 largest yachts. In January 2016, it was reported that Tatoosh allegedly damaged coral in the Cayman Islands. In April 2016, the Department of Environment (DoE) and Allen's Vulcan Inc. successfully completed a restoration plan to help speed recovery and protect the future of coral in this area.

In 2016, Allen purchased a platform supply vessel and christened it RV Petrel. The project team aboard Petrel was responsible for locating IJN Musashi when they were still aboard Octopus. In 2017, on Allen's directions, RV Petrel found the USS Indianapolis (CA-35), USS Ward (DD-139), the wrecks of the Battle of Surigao Strait and the Battle of Ormoc Bay. In 2018, Petrel found a lost US Navy C-2A Greyhound aircraft in the Philippine Sea, the USS Lexington (CV-2) in the Coral Sea and more recently the USS Juneau (CL-52).

Death

Allen died in Seattle from complications of non-Hodgkin's lymphoma on October 15, 2018. He was 65 years old.

Awards and recognition

Allen received numerous awards in many different areas, including sports, philanthropy, and the arts:

• On March 9, 2005, Allen, Burt Rutan, and the SpaceShipOne team were awarded the 2005 National Air and Space Museum Trophy for Current Achievement.
• In 2007 and 2008, Allen was listed among the Time 100 Most Influential People in The World.
• He received the Vanguard Award from the National Cable & Telecommunications Association on May 20, 2008.
• On October 30, 2008, the Seattle-King County Association of Realtors honored Allen for his "unwavering commitment to nonprofit organizations in the Pacific Northwest and lifetime giving approaching US$1 billion."
• In 2009, Allen's philanthropy as the long-time owner of the Trail Blazers was recognized with an Oregon Sports Award
• On October 26, 2010, Allen was awarded the W.J.S. Krief Lifetime Achievement Award for his contributions to the field of neuroscience by the Cajal Club.

• On January 26, 2011, at Seattle's Benaroya Hall, Allen was named Seattle Sports Commission Sports Citizen of the Year, an award that has been renamed the Paul Allen Award.
• In 2011, Allen was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
• On October 15, 2012, Allen received the Eli and Edythe Broad Award for Philanthropy in the Arts at the National Arts Awards.
• On February 2, 2014, Allen received a Super Bowl ring as the Seattle Seahawks won the Vince Lombardi Trophy.
• On October 22, 2014, Allen received a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Seattle Business Magazine for his impact in and around the greater Puget Sound region.
• On December 31, 2014, Online philanthropy magazine, Inside Philanthropy, made Allen their inaugural "Philanthropist of the Year" for his ongoing effort to stop the Ebola outbreak in West Africa, breaking ground on a new research center in Seattle, and his battle to save the world's oceans.
• On July 18, 2015, Ischia Global Film and Music Festival recognized Allen with the Ischia Humanitarian Award. Event organizers honored Allen for his contributions to social issues through his philanthropic efforts.
• On August 25, 2015, Allen was named a recipient of the Andrew Carnegie Medal of Philanthropy for his work to "save endangered species, fight Ebola, research the human brain, support the arts, protect the oceans, and expand educational opportunities for girls."
• On October 3, 2015, the Center for Infectious Disease Research presented Allen with the 2015 "Champion for Global Health Award" for his leadership and effort to fight Ebola.
• On December 10, 2016, Allen, as co-owner of the Seattle Sounders, won the 2016 MLS Cup.

Honorary degrees

• Honorary degree from the Washington State University. The university bestowed its highest honor, the Regents' Distinguished Alumnus Award, upon him.
• Honorary doctorate in Philosophy from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University
• Honorary doctorate of Science from the Cold Spring Harbor Laboratory's Watson School of Biological Sciences.
• Honorary degree from the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne

Books

In 2011, Allen's memoir Idea Man: A Memoir by the Cofounder of Microsoft, was published by Portfolio, a Penguin Group imprint. The book recounts how Allen became enamored with computers at an early age, conceived the idea for Microsoft, recruited his friend Bill Gates to join him, and launched what would become the world's most successful software company. The paperback version of Idea Man, which included a new epilogue, came out on October 30, 2012.