Android co-founder Rich Miner has responded to Bill Gates‘ admission about Microsoft‘s $400 billion mobile market failure, stating that Gates himself was largely responsible for losing the smartphone wars to Android.
“I literally helped create Android to prevent Microsoft from controlling the phone the way they did the PC – stifling innovation. So it’s always funny for me to hear Gates whine about losing mobile to Android,” Miner wrote on X (formerly), responding to Gates’ comments about Microsoft’s biggest mistake.
Miner, who has firsthand experience with both sides of the mobile ecosystem, revealed he had concerns about Microsoft’s potential monopolistic control of the mobile market while working on the first Windows Mobile phone.
“I helped Orange launch the first Windows Mobile phone in 2002, the SPV. I worried MSFT might end up controlling mobile like they did the PC, I wanted something more open. So, sorry Bill, you’re more responsible for loosing the $400B than you realize,” Miner stated.
His comments came after Gates admitted in an interview with Eventbrite CEO Julia Hartz that Microsoft’s failure to become the dominant non-Apple mobile platform was “one of the greatest mistakes of all time.” Gates estimated this mistake cost Microsoft approximately $400 billion in potential market value, which instead went to Google’s Android platform.
The timing of market entry proved crucial in the mobile platform wars. While Apple launched the iPhone in June 2007 and Google’s Android followed in September 2008, Microsoft didn’t release Windows Phone 7 until October 2010. This delay contributed to Android and Apple eventually capturing 99.9 percent of the mobile market share.
