In the late ‘90s, amidst the frenzy of the dot-com boom, Wired magazine made a bold prediction that Bill Gates, the tech titan behind Microsoft, could soar to trillionaire status by 2005. The math seemed sound: Gates’ stake in Microsoft, which had ballooned from $233.9 million at its IPO in 1986 to a staggering $72.2 billion by June 1999, was growing at a blistering rate of 58.2% annually. But reality took a different turn. Rather than holding onto every Microsoft share, Gates opted for a different path. He began offloading chunks of his stake, diversifying his investment portfolio. Fast-forward to today: Microsoft’s market value has surged to $3 trillion, but Gates’ ownership has dwindled to a mere 1.34%. Had Gates maintained his original stake, his net worth would have reached unprecedented heights. Gates’ original 49% stake would be worth approximately $1.47 trillion, making him the world’s first trillionaire. Instead, Gates’ net worth stands at an estimated $154 billion as of J...