Bill Gates Returns Steve Jobs' Criticism With Praise (Video)

Bill Gates isn't harboring any ill-will towards his former rival, Steve Jobs, despite the critical comments the Apple co-founder made about him before his death Oct. 5. 

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In his recently-released biography, Jobs had some harsh words for the Microsoft chairman, who was his company's number one competitor. 

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"Bill is basically unimaginative and has never invented anything, which is why I think he's more comfortable now in philanthropy than technology," Jobs, who died of respiratory arrest after battling pancreatic cancer for years, is quoted as saying, adding, "He just shamelessly ripped off other people's ideas."

But, when asked what he thought of the statements during an interview on ABC's This Week with Christiane Amanpour. 

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"Steve Jobs did a fantastic job," Gates said in the interview, ABC news reports. "When you think about why is the world better today, the Internet, the personal computer, the phone, the way you can deal with information is just so phenomenal."

He also mentioned that Jobs wasn't always so harsh. 

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"Over the course of the 30 years we worked together, you know, he said a lot of very nice things about me and he said a lot of tough things," Gates said, mentioning their collaboration on the software for the first Macintosh computer. "We got to work together. We spurred each other on, even as competitors. None of that bothers me at all."

Watch the video below