Microsoft vs TotalEnergies: Founders, CEOs and History
Microsoft was founded in 1975 by Bill Gates, Paul Allen and is led by Satya Nadella. TotalEnergies was founded in 1924 by Raymond Poincaré, Ernest Mercier and is led by Patrick Pouyanné.
Company facts
Microsoft
- Founded
- 1975
- Headquarters
- Redmond, Washington, United States
- Current CEO
- Satya Nadella
- Employees
- 223,000
TotalEnergies
- Founded
- 1924
- Headquarters
- Paris, France
- Current CEO
- Patrick Pouyanné
- Employees
- 100,000
Founders
Microsoft
Bill Gates
Microsoft was founded in 1975 in Albuquerque, New Mexico, by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, childhood friends from Seattle who had spent their teenage years finding ways to get free time on mainframe computers.
Paul Allen
Paul Allen co-founded Microsoft and was crucial to its earliest technical and strategic decisions. He helped develop Altair BASIC, gave the company its original name, and participated in the operating-system opportunity that led to MS-DOS.
TotalEnergies
Raymond Poincaré
Raymond Poincaré was President of France during World War I and Prime Minister when his government pushed for a national oil company in 1924.
Ernest Mercier
Ernest Mercier was the industrialist chosen to set up and chair Compagnie Française des Pétroles.
CEOs and their tenures
Microsoft
- Bill Gates1975–2000
Co-founder and CEO
Gates built Microsoft's licensing model: software sold to many hardware makers rather than tied to one.
Source - Steve Ballmer2000–2014
CEO
Ballmer grew revenue from about $23 billion in FY2000 to about $78 billion in FY2013 and built the enterprise server and sales business that Azure later scaled on.
Source - Satya Nadella2014–present
Chairman and CEO
Nadella made Azure and Microsoft 365 the company's core, opened Microsoft to Linux and open source, and positioned it early in generative AI through OpenAI.
Source
TotalEnergies
- Thierry Desmarest1995–2007
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
Under his leadership, Total more than doubled in size, becoming a dominant global supermajor capable of competing with Exxon and Shell.
Source - Christophe de Margerie2007–2014
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
He transformed Total into one of the most geographically diverse supermajors before his sudden death in a plane crash in 2014.
Source - Patrick Pouyanné2014–present
Chairman and Chief Executive Officer
CEO since October 2014 and Chairman since December 2015, Pouyanné renamed the company TotalEnergies in 2021, expanded LNG and Integrated Power, and kept returns at the top of the majors (12.6% ROACE in 2025).
Source - Jean-Pierre Sbraire2019–present
Chief Financial Officer
As CFO, he fortified the balance sheet during unprecedented energy market volatility following the geopolitical shocks of 2022.
Source
Timeline: Microsoft and TotalEnergies side by side
1924TotalEnergies
Compagnie Francaise des Petroles founded
The French state-backed oil company was created to secure access to petroleum resources and became the predecessor of TotalEnergies.
1954TotalEnergies
Total Brand Created
The company created the Total brand in 1954 to build a retail distribution network.
1975Microsoft
Microsoft Founded
Bill Gates and Paul Allen founded Microsoft after recognizing that the Altair 8800 needed usable programming software. Their first product, Altair BASIC, turned a hobbyist computer kit into a programmable platform.
1981Microsoft
MS-DOS Ships With IBM PC
IBM introduced its personal computer with MS-DOS 1.0 and other Microsoft products. The milestone mattered because Microsoft's operating-system work moved from a small software supplier's project into the emerging corporate PC standard.
1985Microsoft
Windows Launch
The release of Windows 1.0 began Microsoft's long move from command-line operating systems to graphical personal computing. The first version was not an instant blockbuster, but it gave Microsoft a user-interface path that could evolve with PC hardware.
1986Microsoft
Microsoft IPO
Microsoft went public on the Nasdaq in March 1986.
1990Microsoft
Office Suite Release
The bundling of Word, Excel, and PowerPoint into Microsoft Office created a productivity suite that became central to business work. The bundle simplified enterprise purchasing and made file compatibility a competitive weapon.
1995Microsoft
Windows 95 Released
Microsoft released Windows 95 in August 1995.
1995TotalEnergies
Thierry Desmarest becomes CEO
Thierry Desmarest became CEO of TotalEnergies in 1995. Led Total from 1995 to 2007 and engineered the Petrofina and Elf Aquitaine combinations; remained Chairman until 2010.
1998Microsoft
U.S. Antitrust Case
The U.S. Department of Justice accused Microsoft of using Windows power to suppress browser competition. The case mattered because it placed Microsoft's platform tactics under public and legal scrutiny at the height of its PC strong position.
1999TotalEnergies
Petrofina acquired; Elf Aquitaine follows in 2000
Total combined with Belgium's Petrofina in 1999 and Elf Aquitaine in 2000, operating as TotalFinaElf before reverting to Total in 2003.
2000TotalEnergies
Elf Aquitaine Acquired
Total acquired Elf Aquitaine in 2000, forming TotalFinaElf.
2007TotalEnergies
Christophe de Margerie becomes CEO
Christophe de Margerie became CEO of TotalEnergies in 2007. CEO from 2007 and Chairman from 2010 until his death in a plane accident at Moscow's Vnukovo airport in October 2014.
2010Microsoft
Azure Commercial Launch
Azure gave Microsoft a way to compete in cloud infrastructure as enterprise customers began shifting workloads away from company-owned servers.
2011TotalEnergies
Acquired SunPower (majority stake)
TotalEnergies acquired SunPower (majority stake).
2014Microsoft
Satya Nadella CEO
Satya Nadella became CEO and moved Microsoft away from a strategy that forced every product to serve Windows. He prioritized Azure, Microsoft 365, open source, Linux support, cross-platform software, and a more collaborative developer posture.
2016Microsoft
LinkedIn Acquisition
Microsoft agreed to acquire LinkedIn in 2016 for $26.2 billion in cash. The deal mattered because it added a professional identity network to a company already strong in Office, Dynamics, cloud services, recruiting tools, advertising, and enterprise sales.
2018Microsoft
GitHub Acquisition
Microsoft acquired GitHub for $7.5 billion in stock, reversing years of developer skepticism toward the company. The acquisition placed Microsoft inside the daily workflow of software developers across languages, clouds, and operating systems.
2018TotalEnergies
Direct Energie acquired
Total bought French power and gas retailer Direct Energie, the base of its European retail electricity business.
2021TotalEnergies
Total becomes TotalEnergies
The company changed its name to TotalEnergies to reflect a broader multi-energy strategy spanning oil, gas, electricity, renewables, and low-carbon energy.
2023Microsoft
AI Leadership
Microsoft's expanded OpenAI partnership and Copilot product rollout placed the company at the center of enterprise generative AI adoption.
2023Microsoft
Activision Blizzard Acquisition Closes
Microsoft completed the Activision Blizzard acquisition after intense regulatory review. The deal added Call of Duty, World of Warcraft, Diablo, Overwatch, Candy Crush, and other franchises to Microsoft Gaming.
2025TotalEnergies
2025 results
Revenues from sales of $182.344 billion, adjusted net income of $15.6 billion (down 15%), IFRS net income of $13.127 billion and a €3.40 dividend.
2026TotalEnergies
Mozambique LNG full restart
On January 29, 2026, Patrick Pouyanné and President Daniel Chapo announced the full restart of the roughly $20 billion Mozambique LNG project after force majeure was lifted in November 2025.
2026TotalEnergies
Q2 2026 results
Adjusted net income of $6.0 billion and cash flow of $9.8 billion in the second quarter as higher oil prices tied to the Middle East conflict lifted earnings.
Acquisitions
Microsoft
- Activision Blizzard2023$68.7B
- Nuance Communications2022$19.7B
- ZeniMax Media2021$7.5B
- GitHub2018$7.5B
- LinkedIn2016$26.2B
TotalEnergies
- Direct Energie2018$1.6B
- Saft Groupe2016Undisclosed
- SunPower (majority stake)2011Undisclosed
- Petrofina and Elf Aquitaine1999Undisclosed
Questions about Microsoft vs TotalEnergies
Who is the CEO of Microsoft Corporation and TotalEnergies SE?
Microsoft Corporation is led by Satya Nadella and TotalEnergies SE is led by Patrick Pouyanné. Both serve as the top executive responsible for the company's strategy, operations, and financial performance.
When was Microsoft Corporation founded vs TotalEnergies SE?
TotalEnergies SE was founded in 1924 — 51 years before Microsoft Corporation, which was founded in 1975. TotalEnergies SE's longer operating history gives it a deeper track record but also potentially more institutional inertia compared to the younger Microsoft Corporation.
How many employees does Microsoft Corporation have compared to TotalEnergies SE?
Microsoft Corporation employs approximately 223,000 people, while TotalEnergies SE employs approximately 100,000. Microsoft Corporation has the larger workforce at 223,000 employees, compared to TotalEnergies SE's 100,000. A higher headcount does not necessarily imply greater efficiency — it often reflects differences in business model (e.g., manufacturing vs. software).
Where are Microsoft Corporation and TotalEnergies SE headquartered?
Microsoft Corporation is headquartered in United States and TotalEnergies SE is headquartered in France. Their different home markets mean they may face different regulatory frameworks, tax regimes, and currency exposure.
Who founded Microsoft Corporation and TotalEnergies SE?
Microsoft Corporation was founded by Bill Gates, Paul Allen. TotalEnergies SE was founded by Raymond Poincaré, Ernest Mercier.
Which company has a longer operating history — Microsoft Corporation or TotalEnergies SE?
TotalEnergies SE has been operating for approximately 102 years, making it the more established of the two companies. Microsoft Corporation has been in operation for around 51 years. A longer operating history often signals greater institutional resilience and brand recognition, though it can also mean slower adaptation to new market conditions.
Figures come from each company's filings and the sources linked beside them. Amounts reported in another currency are shown in US dollars at an approximate rate and marked with ~. Back to the Microsoft vs TotalEnergies overview