Bill Gates said today that he's no longer going to work as the Chief Software Architect of Microsoft in order to devote more time to his Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. Chief Technical Officer Ray Ozzie is going to be stepping into Gates' old position after July 2008.

This news comes at an interesting time, when shareholders and customers are antsy about Vista's constant delays and Microsoft's perceived internal structuring problems. People had guessed that CEO Ballmer would be the one who would step down first due to Vista's mismanagement.

Gates is still going to be the company's chairman and advise them on technologies, but will play less into day-to-day activities. – Jason Chen

Bill Gates to step down from Microsoft [CNN]

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