Paul Allen, Microsoft co-founder, dead at 65

Paul Allen, who co-founded Microsoft alongside Bill Gates in 1975, has died aged 65.

Allen succumbed to non-Hodgkin’s lymphoma only two weeks after confirming the disease, for his he had been previously treated in 2009, had returned.

After announcing his diagnosis earlier in October, he had said doctors were “optimistic” about his treatment.

Allen was thought to have been the 46th-richest person in the world, with an estimated net worth of €17.5 billion.

Following news of his death, Gates said he was “heartbroken by the passing of one of my oldest and dearest friends”, and that “personal computing would not have existed without him.”

"From our early days together at Lakeside School, through our partnership in the creation of Microsoft, to some of our joint philanthropic projects over the years, Paul was a true partner and dear friend," Gates said.

"He deserved much more time, but his contributions to the world of technology and philanthropy will live on for generations to come. I will miss him tremendously,” he added.