Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's son Zain dies at 26

Zain Nadella, the 26-year-old old son of Microsoft Corp Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella and his wife Anu, passed away on Monday (February 28) morning. He had been born with cerebral palsy.

His son’s death was announced by Nadella in an email to his executive staff. The message requested the executives to hold the family in their thoughts and prayers while giving them space to grieve privately.

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After taking over as CEO in 2014 after Bill Gates and Steve Ballmer, Nadella has built products to better serve users with disabilities giving lessons he learned raising and supporting Zain.

In 2017, Nadella had shared this statement through a blog post: “Becoming a father of a son with special needs was the turning point in my life that has shaped who I am today. It has helped me better understand the journey of people with disabilities. It has shaped my personal passion for and philosophy of connecting new ideas to empathy for others. And it is why I am deeply committed to pushing the bounds on what love and compassion combined with human ingenuity and passion to have impact can accomplish with my colleagues at Microsoft.”

Last year, the Children’s Hospital, where Zain received much of his treatment, had teamed up with Nadellas to establish the Zain Nadella Endowed Chair in Pediatric Neurosciences, as part of the Seattle Children’s Center for Integrative Brain Research.

According to Jeff Sperring, CEO of Children’s Hospital, Zain will be remembered for his eclectic taste in music, his bright sunny smile and the immense joy he brought to his family and all those who loved him. He wrote this as a message to his Board, which was shared with Microsoft executives.