Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates has told the U.S. House Oversight Committee that he never discussed Jeffrey Epstein with the disgraced former prince Andrew Mountbatten-Windsor, but revealed that the convicted sex offender 'weirdly' kept a photograph of the pair together at an official function. The transcript of Gates's closed-door testimony, released this week, sheds further light on the tech billionaire's limited interactions with Epstein and his associates.
Gates's Testimony to Congress
Gates appeared before the influential committee earlier this month as part of its investigation into the late financier Jeffrey Epstein and the U.S. government's handling of the sex trafficking scandal. During the session, Gates acknowledged that meeting Epstein 'was a grave error in judgment,' but insisted the relationship was confined to philanthropic discussions and denied any knowledge of Epstein's abuse of underage girls.
When asked whether he had ever discussed Epstein with Prince Andrew, Gates responded: 'Nothing connected to Epstein.' He explained that he had encountered Andrew twice during official visits to the UK, where the prince was serving as a trade representative. Gates clarified that these interactions were 'never about Jeffrey Epstein.'
The 'Weird' Photograph
Gates added: 'Weirdly in the set of photos that I guess Epstein kept, there is a photo of me and prince Andrew at one of those official state meetings. But nothing in connection with Epstein, even though Epstein seemed to have that picture and it shows up in the Epstein files.' The undated image, showing Gates and Andrew in suits and ties in a formal setting, was among photographs from Epstein's personal collection released by Democrats on the oversight committee in late 2023.
Gates confirmed that Epstein was not present at the UK function where the photo was taken. 'No, no, I never saw him in the UK, and those were both meetings in the UK,' he testified.
Epstein's Photo Collection
The released photographs also included images of Epstein with Donald Trump before his presidency, former president Bill Clinton, Virgin Group founder Sir Richard Branson, and film director Woody Allen. No captions or context accompanied the images. Other items in Epstein's collection included photographs of sex toys, such as safety instructions for a device called 'The Jawbreaker Gag.'
Epstein was found dead in his Manhattan jail cell in August 2019 while awaiting trial on federal sex trafficking charges; his death was ruled a suicide. His accomplice, British socialite Ghislaine Maxwell, is serving a 20-year prison sentence for luring teenage girls for Epstein to abuse.
Prince Andrew's Ongoing Controversy
Virginia Giuffre, who died by suicide in 2024, had accused Andrew of sexually assaulting her when she was a teenager after being trafficked by Epstein. Andrew has consistently denied the allegations, but in 2022 he reached an out-of-court settlement with Giuffre. King Charles III stripped his brother of his royal titles in 2024 after fresh revelations about Andrew's ties to Epstein, and Andrew was forced to vacate his Windsor mansion and relocate to the monarch's private Sandringham estate in Norfolk.
The scandal also led to the dismissal of Lord Peter Mandelson as UK ambassador to the United States. Both Andrew and Mandelson were arrested in February 2025 on suspicion of misconduct in public office over their Epstein connections; they were released under investigation and deny any wrongdoing.
Andrew faced further controversy in 2025 when it emerged that he had received undisclosed private income from subletting three cottages on his Royal Lodge estate while paying a nominal rent for over two decades.
