Phoebe Gates says the worst part about her TikTok fame is “misconceptions” about her family.
Bill Gates’ 20-year-old daughter said people had “conspiracy theories” about her.
Phoebe Gates says in an interview with The Information that people follow her “because of my family name.”
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Bill Gates’ youngest daughter says the worst thing about being famous on TikTok is the wrong beliefs people have about it your family have.
Phoebe Gates said The Informationthe biggest downside to posting on the platform is all the “misunderstandings and conspiracy theories”.
The 20-year-old has more than 64,000 followers on TikTok and gives viewers a glimpse into her life with Microsoft co-founder Bill Gates and her mother Melinda French Gates. Their parents settled in 2021 after 27 years of marriage to divorce.
Tiktok is still fun for Phoebe
“I’m pretty sure people follow me because of my family name. And people probably think it’s funny to see my dad playing boxing balls as a jerk,” Gates told The Information in an email.
She added: “But once they follow me, they stick with it, and I think that’s partly because of the topics I post about, like women’s health. And honestly; TikTok is fun.”
Gates shared recently clips from a “contraceptive talk with my mom” and a funny video of her dad dancing when he was young. She posted a video showing Bill Gates at a “boxball” game has been viewed 8.3 million times since December.
Phoebe is that youngest of Bill and Melinda Gates’ three children. She educated at Stanford University and did an internship at British Vogue. She also uses her social media to talk about sustainability in fashion.
Gates daughter wants to start a startup
Together with her roommate in Stanford and climate activist Sophia Kianni, she plans to found a startup called Phia later this year: “We are working on an idea to make fashion more sustainable … social media will play a big role in this,” says Phoebe to The Information.
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Phoebe said her mother is “supportive and curious” about her use of social media and that she “understands” it’s a place for young people to thrive, according to The Information. “My dad posts a lot on social media, but he doesn’t follow them very much himself,” she added.
Phoebe also told the magazine that some users criticized her for posting a picture of her boyfriend, another Stanford student who is black: “It’s 2023. I’m sick of being booed for criticized my relationship.”
Phoebe Gates did not immediately respond to a Business Insider request for comment.
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