Today, Microsoft hits a milestone that few companies ever reach: 50 years old. It’s hard to imagine a world without the tech giant, but rewind to April 4, 1975, and you’d find two young friends—Bill Gates and Paul Allen—huddled over a vision that would change computing forever. Back then, they called it “Micro-Soft,” a nod to their focus on microprocessors and software, dreamed up to power the Altair 8800, one of the earliest personal computers. Half a century later, that hyphen’s long gone, and Microsoft’s fingerprints are on everything from the laptops we use daily to the cloud services running the internet’s backbone.

Let’s take a stroll through Microsoft’s story—a tale of scrappy beginnings, blockbuster wins, and a relentless drive to stay relevant in a tech world that never sits still.

The early days: from Albuquerque to IBM

Microsoft’s origin story kicks off in Albuquerque, New Mexico, where Gates and Allen set up shop. They were barely out of their teens, fueled by a mix of geeky passion and big dreams. Their first big break came in 1980, when they inked a deal with IBM to provide the operating system for its debut personal computer. That software became MS-DOS—clunky by today’s standards, but a game-changer back then. By the mid-’80s, MS-DOS was the beating heart of IBM-compatible PCs, putting Microsoft on the map and setting the stage for something even bigger.

That something was Windows. Launched in 1985, the first version was a graphical shell slapped over MS-DOS—not exactly a beauty, but it hinted at Gates’ dream: “A computer on every desk and in every home.” It wasn’t until Windows 95 dropped a decade later that the vision really snapped into focus. We still remember the buzz—people lining up at midnight outside electronics stores like it was a rock concert, clutching boxed copies of Windows 95. That release brought us the Start menu, the desktop as we know it, File Explorer, and the Recycle Bin. It was a cultural moment as much as a tech one, complete with a Rolling Stones soundtrack (“Start Me Up,” naturally).

Office, Xbox, and beyond

While Windows was Microsoft’s golden goose, the company wasn’t content to stop there. In the late ’80s, it started stitching together a suite of productivity apps—Word, Excel, PowerPoint—that would become Microsoft Office. First launched for the Mac in 1989 (a fun trivia tidbit), it hit Windows soon after and grew into a juggernaut. Today, Office is everywhere—on your laptop, your phone, even your browser. Billions of people use it daily, from students hammering out essays to CEOs crunching numbers.

Microsoft’s ambition didn’t end with software. In 2001, it jumped into gaming with the Xbox, taking on Sony and Nintendo with a boxy console that became a sleeper hit. Then came Azure in 2008, a cloud platform that’s now a powerhouse, rivaling Amazon’s AWS. Even Bing—launched in 2009 as Microsoft’s scrappy answer to Google—has carved out a niche, despite the jokes. And let’s not forget hardware: the Surface line, kicked off in 2012, turned Microsoft into a legit device maker, blending sleek design with Windows and Office in a way that’s made it a darling of the hybrid-work era.

Stumbles and comebacks

Of course, it hasn’t all been smooth sailing. Microsoft’s had its share of flops—Windows Vista’s sluggish mess in 2007, the mobile phone dreams that never quite took off, and the Zune music player that couldn’t touch the iPod. But the company’s knack for reinvention has kept it in the game. Under Satya Nadella, who took the CEO reins in 2014, Microsoft pivoted hard to the cloud and opened up to partnerships it once would’ve sneered at—like embracing Linux on Azure. That adaptability’s why it’s still a $3 trillion titan today.

The AI horizon

So, what’s next for a 50-year-old tech giant? If you ask Microsoft, it’s all about AI. The company’s been pouring billions into artificial intelligence, from its partnership with OpenAI (the folks behind ChatGPT) to its Copilot tools popping up in Windows, Office, and beyond. Imagine a Word that writes your first draft or an Excel that predicts your next budget move—Microsoft’s betting that’s not sci-fi, but the near future. Azure’s AI capabilities are already powering businesses worldwide, and the Surface lineup’s shaping up as a testing ground for AI-driven PCs.

It’s a bold swing, and it’s not without risks. Privacy concerns, ethical questions, and fierce competition from Google and Amazon loom large. But if Microsoft’s track record proves anything, it’s that this company knows how to evolve.

A golden anniversary bash

Today, Microsoft’s throwing itself a party at its sprawling Redmond, Washington, headquarters. The agenda’s packed: new Copilot features are set to debut, and word is we’ll see some familiar faces—maybe even Gates or Allen—reflecting on the past and peering into the future. It’s a rare moment for a company that’s spent five decades shaping how we work, play, and connect.

Fifty years in, Microsoft’s not just a survivor—it’s a pacesetter. From that dusty Albuquerque office to the AI-powered cloud, it’s a story of grit, luck, and a relentless push forward. Here’s to the next 50—whatever they bring.