“Look, everyone, I’d like to be very honest with you this morning. I had something of a crisis of conscience last night as I was getting ready for this hearing. And I realized a few things. First, oh my God, my company is making billions of dollars and I’ve been keeping most of it, almost all of it, in fact—some of it in personal assets, some tied up in economic entities under my control. Sure, I’ve donated to important causes, but I’ve been holding on to most of this wealth while so many people have nothing. And for what? So I can buy a 7th house? So I can make my mega-corporation even bigger? What have I been doing? In the coming months, I’m going to take some time to reflect. I’m going to sit down with spiritual leaders, non-profit leaders, scientists, teachers, activists, philosophers—people who have grappled with and who understand some of the biggest problems we’re facing as humans, like hunger, climate change, this virus, racism, authoritarianism, this sense of division and confusion most of us feel, hatred, and…greed itself. And I’ll be announcing plans to give away at least 95% of my wealth within one year. I'll also be doing everything I can to transform the entire structure of work and reward in this country and this world. I’ve seen that, sure I’ve worked my ass off and should be able to have a good salary and, you know, I want to be able to share a little with my family and friends; but I have employees who have worked just as hard as I have. I have some who are twice my age who have worked hard their whole life. And God, I met my friend’s aunt last fall—she works two jobs that are, frankly, jobs I’d never want, and she’s caring for people and…she works harder than I do and barely gets by. So do I “deserve” this obscene amount of money because of where my education and privilege and luck landed me? That’s absurd. If I deserve these billions of dollars then half the people in this country deserve to make the same amount. No, no, that’s ridiculous. The other big thing I realized is that I’m heading a company and my main goal every day for the last 15 years was just to make this company bigger and richer. Wow. What am I actually doing with my life? I mean, I’m going to die some day. Do I want my tombstone to be made of gold and for my obituary to say, “Tech Billionaire, Made Controversial Software”? Ugh, that is such a depressing thought. But I’m feeling, honestly, so inspired when I think about what I really want to do with this precious life. And it’s actually pretty simple. I want to make every decision in this company, in my personal life, in my spiritual life, in my politics, in how I interact with the economy and the environment—every decision—by asking some important questions. What will make me proud when I’m lying on my deathbed? What would be compassionate and kind? What might benefit struggling people, hungry people, working people, lonely and confused people, people who have been marginalized and brutalized? What might benefit this fragile planet and the people who live here five or seven or twenty generations from now? What will nourish the spirit of humanity? Thinking in this way makes me happier than I’ve ever been. And I’m starting today. I ask all the other CEOs joining us today to meet with me so we can talk about all this. Let’s take off our ill-earned crowns and answer only to our humanity. Not our shareholders or our boards, I mean, come on now. We need to stop this insane way of life in which what we call “progress” destroys the environment and disrespects so much of what is truly beautiful in life. Instead, let's respond to the real needs of our human family and this world. How could we have missed this? How can this not be at the top of our minds, especially as people who ended up with so much power? Well, let’s start fresh. Let’s make today the first day of this new way of being.” - a future tech billionaire speaking before congress (or at least my dream for one)