Inspired by an article in Popular Electronics magazine, Paul Allen and Bill Gates develop a BASIC computer language for the MITS Altair 8800, Microsoft’s first product.
Microsoft’s year-end sales exceed $1 million. The first Coca-Cola bill for the Albuquerque office totals $566.50.
Seattle natives Gates and Allen move Microsoft headquarters to Bellevue, Washington, relocating 10 of the original 11 employees.
Microsoft begins selling software for consumers with the introduction of Typing Tutor, followed quickly by Olympic Decathlon and Adventure.
IBM ships its new PC running MS-DOS. Basic, Cobol and other Microsoft software is also available for the new machine.
Microsoft Word and the Microsoft Mouse ship.
Microsoft productivity software ships alongside the new Apple Macintosh computer.
Excel changes the spreadsheet game when it ships for the Macintosh. Windows 1.0 ships.
Microsoft moves to its new corporate campus in Redmond, WA and goes public at $21 per share.
The first version of Office hits the market, creating a “suite” new category for productivity software.
Microsoft ships Windows 3.0 with enhanced memory management. The Windows application portfolio explodes, starting with our own productivity applications within Office.
Visual Basic pioneers the application development category, making it even easier to develop for Windows.
The Microsoft Research group is established to expand the reach of personal computing technology.
Access and FoxPro for Windows ship, making it easier for non-developers to manage their data.
Microsoft introduces its Microsoft Home line of software, including reference titles like Encarta, Dogs and Dinosaurs, and its first software created specifically for kids, like Creative Writer and Fine Artist.
Microsoft Windows NT and NT Advanced Server ship.
Microsoft launches its first all-up global brand campaign, known as "Where Do You Want to Go Today?"
Bill Gates introduces Microsoft Bob at his first CES keynote.
Windows 95 and Office 95 ship in a whirlwind of mainstream publicity. MSN ships as a Windows 95 option, and Internet Explorer 1.0 ships as part of the Windows 95 Plus! Pack. By October, 7 million units of Windows 95 have sold, and by November, more than 500,000 users have signed up for MSN.
Microsoft hosts Internet Strategy Day, announcing its commitment to adding Internet capabilities into all of its products.
Microsoft ships Office 97 and Exchange, and acquires FrontPage and the Internet Gaming Zone.
MSNBC launches.
Microsoft acquires Hotmail and WebTV, and invests $150 million in Apple Computer.
Pollsters Hart and Teeter find that Microsoft is the most admired company in America.
Windows 98 ships in 40 countries simultaneously.
Internet Explorer 5.0 launches with more than one million downloads in the first week.
Microsoft launches .NET, Windows 2000 and Windows ME.
Steve Ballmer becomes CEO of Microsoft.
Microsoft launches Windows XP and Office XP.
Microsoft launches the Xbox console along with a five-game lineup including Halo.
Bill Gates outlines Microsoft’s commitment to Trustworthy Computing.
Microsoft launches Windows Server 2003. Microsoft Office System 2003 also releases including a brand new application called OneNote.
Halo 2 releases and sells 2.4 million units in 24 hours.
Xbox 360 launches at a 24-hour party in the Mojave desert.
Microsoft receives its 5000th patent, covering technologies allowing gamers to be online spectators.
Microsoft launches Bing, Windows 7, Azure and the first Retail Store.
Windows Phone 7, Office 2010 and Kinect for the Xbox 360 launch.
Microsoft acquires Skype.
Microsoft acquires Yammer.
Microsoft launches Windows 8 and the first Microsoft Surface.
Office 365 Home Premium releases and hits the one million subscriber mark just over 100 days later.
"One Microsoft" reorganization realigns company to enable innovation.
Xbox One ships.
Satya Nadella named CEO of Microsoft.
Microsoft launches Office for iPad.
Microsoft announces Windows Phone 8.1 with the new Cortana personal assistant.
Microsoft launches Surface Pro 3, the tablet that can replace your laptop.
Hololens unveiled.
Windows 10 Launches.
Microsoft announces Surface Book, Surface Pro 4, Microsoft Band 2, and two new Lumia phones with Continuum.
Microsoft Philanthropies commits to $1 Billion in donations putting Microsoft Cloud to work for global good.
A host of new products are announced at the Windows Creator’s Update announcement, including the Surface Studio and Dial.
Microsoft finalizes the acquisition of LinkedIn.
Microsoft Teams, a new chat-based workspace is rolled out to Office 365 customers worldwide.
The new Surface Laptop and Surface Pro 5 are available in 25 markets worldwide
An ambitious modernization project for Microsoft’s Redmond headquarters is announced, with 18 new buildings to be completed by 2022.
A product that began as a 2015 Hackathon project ships as the Xbox Adaptive Controller, designed to include gamers of all abilities.
The Surface Go launches, offering a new level of portability and affordability to consumers.
GitHub acquisition completes, with the goal of empowering developers, accelerating GitHub’s growth and advancing Microsoft services with new audiences
$500 million is committed to advance affordable housing in Puget Sound region
Hololens 2 is introduced.
London flagship store opens.