Microsoft’s 48th birthday bash: A week of 80s nostalgia

News
By Ben Wilson
published

Party like it's 1985 with a nostalgic journey back in time.

Microsoft's 48th birthday promotion
(Image credit: Microsoft)

What you need to know

  • Microsoft was founded on April 4, 1975, by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in New Mexico with an occasionally hyphenated variant of its name.
  • Current CEO Satya Nadella has headed Microsoft since February 4, 2014.
  • Celebrating its 48th birthday, Microsoft announced a week-long celebration on Twitter, themed around the 1980s.

Microsoft officially turns 48 years old today, celebrating its original founding on April 4, 1975, by Bill Gates and Paul Allen in Albuquerque, New Mexico. Announcing a week-long celebration on Twitter, a collection of 1980s-themed throwbacks is planned to mark the occasion. Plenty of significant milestones were hit during the 80s under the somewhat heavy metal-inspired logo that looks a little striking compared to the subtle designs of today.

Striking a partnership with IBM at the beginning of the decade, Microsoft moved from its stance as an interpreter for the high-level BASIC (Beginners' All-purpose Symbolic Instruction Code) language to creating a fully-fledged operating system. Windows 1.0 might have been released to somewhat mediocre fanfare in 1985, but there's no doubting the success of its follow-ups, dominating market share for desktops and laptops (but alas, not phones. RIP Windows Phone.)

See more

What Microsoft, or specifically its social media team, has planned for this week of throwbacks isn't immediately apparent. It could be a single post per day highlighting the very same milestones mentioned above, or we might be graced with some special-edition wallpapers for modern Windows 11 machines. Who knows. Ending the week with a Windows 12 information bombshell wouldn't be terrible, though.

48 years might not be significant enough to announce anything extra special, perhaps reserved for the 50th anniversary, but it's heartwarming to see Microsoft acknowledge its roots. We'll let you know if anything spectacular comes of this birthday bash.

Ben Wilson
Ben Wilson
Channel Editor

Ben is the channel editor for all things tech-related at Windows Central. That includes PCs, the components inside, and any accessory you can connect to a Windows desktop or Xbox console. Not restricted to one platform, he also has a keen interest in Valve's Steam Deck handheld and the Linux-based operating system inside. Fueling this career with coffee since 2021, you can usually find him behind one screen or another. Find him on Mastodon @trzomb@mastodon.online to ask questions or share opinions.