Has Bill Gates publicly recommended or licensed his name to any consumer cognitive supplements or programs?

1. The scam landscape: fake celebrity endorsements and manufactured “news”

Investigations and consumer-protection authorities chronicled a pattern where online marketers built faux news articles and ad pages that falsely credited Bill Gates (alongside other well‑known figures) with endorsing or benefiting from cognitive supplements—examples include Synagen, Geniux, BrainStorm Elite and related “smart pill” campaigns that assembled fabricated endorsers and forged headlines to sell product (Quartz; Forbes; FTC) ^{[1] [2] [3]}. The Federal Trade Commission specifically found defendants had used sham websites, non‑existent clinical studies, and fabricated celebrity and consumer testimonials, and barred sellers of one such product from making unsupported cognitive improvement claims ^[3].

2. Documented misuse of Gates’s name in advertising, not a licensed deal

Multiple news reports and state actions show Bill Gates’s name and likeness were used in promotional copy and imagery without his endorsement; Iowa and other outlets reported products that claimed Gates “promoted” supplements, and consumer alerts noted Geniux and other supplements falsely attributed dramatic results to Gates and other public figures (Des Moines Register; Consumer.ftc.gov; FTC) ^{[7] [8] [3]}. These accounts portray clear instances of misattribution and fraud, not evidence that Gates authorized or licensed his name for these consumer products ^{[1] [2] [3]}.

3. Counterfeit claims and low‑credibility sites that allege endorsements

A number of low‑credibility or outright fake sites amplify the false narrative that Gates promoted or used brain supplements—examples include clickbait pages and sites republishing fabricated interviews claiming Gates doubled his IQ with a pill; these pages lack credible sourcing and mirror the tactics regulators have targeted ^{[9] [10] [11]}. Forbes and other mainstream outlets have reported how these schemes mimic reputable mastheads and invent bylines to mislead consumers, further undercutting the reliability of any claim that Gates officially endorsed such products ^[2].

4. Where Gates actually focuses: research, philanthropy, and diagnostics

Bill Gates’s public health activity documented in reputable outlets centers on funding research into dementia and nutrition interventions, investing in venture funds for disease‑modifying Alzheimer’s therapies, and writing about diagnostics like blood tests for early detection—not marketing consumer supplements or licensing his brand to commercial nootropics (CNN; Alzheimer’s Research UK; STAT) ^{[4] [5] [6]}. For example, Gates invested in the Dementia Discovery Fund to accelerate therapies ^[5] and has written about blood‑based biomarkers and the promise of disease‑targeting drugs for Alzheimer’s, showing his emphasis on science and clinical development rather than retail supplement endorsements ^[6].

5. Alternative viewpoints, hidden agendas and reporting limitations

Some outlets and aggregator pages assert Gates uses or endorses brain supplements, which can persist because fraudulent marketers benefit from associating big names with miracle claims and because supplements face light premarket regulation—an environment the FTC warns consumers about ^{[8] [3]}. The reporting here documents misuse of Gates’s name and his philanthropic focus, but does not represent an exhaustive audit of every claim on the internet; the assembled sources do not produce any verified record of Gates licensing his name to a consumer cognitive supplement or publicly recommending one ^{[1] [2] [3]}. If additional proprietary endorsements existed outside mainstream reporting, those are not shown in the provided documents.