Melinda French Gates is looking happier than ever as she debuts both a new memoir and a new man for the first time since her split from billionaire ex-husband Bill Gates. 

The 60-year-old philanthropist was all smiles on Sunday as she was snapped on a date with her beau, tech investor Philip Vaughn, in New York City, exclusive DailyMail.com photos show. 

The couple was seen arriving at Winter Garden Theater to watch George Clooney‘s new Broadway production, Good Night, and Good Luck, ahead of the launch of her book, The Next Day, which hits shelves Tuesday. 

Beaming and sporting a post-divorce glow, she looked stylish in a navy blue belted Louis Vuitton wool coat which retails for nearly $5,000, over a black leather dress and $1,200 Valentino studded stilettos. 

Vaughn, the Seattle-based founder of craft beer delivery company Tavour, looked just as spiffy in a gray suit and brown shoes. 

He proved every inch the gentleman, holding the door open for his date as she exited the car. 

The pair, whose relationship was first reported in October, appeared besotted with each other, laughing and smiling from ear to ear as they strolled into the venue hand-in-hand. 

Melinda, who famously split from Microsoft founder Bill Gates in 2021, has recently stepped back into the spotlight to promote her new memoir, in which she candidly reflects on the major transitions in her life, including her high-profile divorce. 

Melinda Gates and her new beau looked smitten with each other during a date in New York City on Sunday 

Exclusive DailyMail.com photos show the two arriving at Winter Garden Theater in Midtown Manhattan to watch George Clooney ‘s new Broadway production, Good Night, and Good Luck

The philanthropist, 60, looked stylish in a navy blue belted Louis Vuitton wool coat – which retails for nearly $5,000 – over a black leather dress and studded stilettos

While she has kept her love life mostly private since her divorce, Melinda confirmed she’s dating someone new and is ‘very, very happy’ in an interview with People earlier this month. 

At the time she said she would rather not name her new partner, however, reports of her budding romance with Vaughn began to emerge late last year. 

The couple’s outing comes hours before the businesswoman kicked off her New York City press tour for her new book, including her appearance on ABC’s Good Morning America on Monday. 

Speaking on her decision to write about her dramatic separation, she told the hosts: ‘It was important because if I’m going to be my most authentic self, people knew I had gone through it.’

‘It is a big transition. And for me, while it was painful for sure, I ended up learning some lessons and there was some growth in there, too,’ she added. 

Bill, 69, has since moved on with Paula Hurd, the widow of the former Oracle CEO Mark Hurd, first revealed by DailyMail.com. The two began dating in 2022. 

Up until now, Melinda had remained largely diplomatic and had rarely spoken publicly about her ex and their failed marriage, save for a few recent interviews in which she called the divorce ‘necessary’ and said she and Bill each have their own lives now. 

She did however make headlines last month when asked for her response to her ex-husband saying their divorce was the mistake he regrets most. 

Vaughn was every inch the gentleman, holding the door open for his date as she exited the car

Both Melinda and her new man could not stop smiling and held hands as they arrived at the theater together 

The couple’s outing comes hours before the businesswoman kicked off her New York City press tour for her new memoir 

Vaughn, the Seattle-based founder of craft beer delivery company Tavour, looked neat and spiffy in a gray suit and brown shoes 

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Melinda was reported to have rolled her eyes in response to Bill’s comment about according to Elle magazine who asked her about the same remark in mid-March. 

She then doubled down when asked again during an interview with the Sunday Times yesterday, saying: ‘I don’t even quite know what to make of that statement, so I’m not going to comment on what he says.

She then gave a short pause and added: ‘He’s got his own life. I have my life now. I’m very happy.’

She did not refer to her billionaire ex by his name while discussing him, hinting further at her level of distaste for the Microsoft founder. 

‘It was something that was necessary,’ Melinda said of the split. ‘If you can’t live your values inside your most intimate relationship, it was necessary.’  

In her memoir, Melinda describes the decline of her marriage, starting in the autumn of 2019, when she says their problems had ‘reached fever pitch’. 

She recalls how the New York Times had just published a ‘deeply disturbing article’ about her husband’s business meetings over a charitable fund with pedophile sex trafficker Epstein, who was found dead in his jail cell while awaiting trial. 

Melinda said the article ‘raised serious questions about Bill’s conduct — questions that suggested he had betrayed not only our marriage but also our values’, according to the Times who have had an advance viewing of the book. 

While Melinda has kept her love life mostly private since her divorce, she confirmed she is dating someone new and is ‘very, very happy’ in an interview earlier this month 

The couple were snapped greeting a friend outside the theater before heading inside 

Melinda began her press tour in New York City on Monday, when she appeared on Good Morning America to discuss her memoir, The Next Day, which hits shelves on Tuesday April 15

‘Bill Gates regrets ever meeting with Epstein and recognizes it was an error in judgment to do so,’ a spokeswoman for the tech tycoon said at the time. 

‘He recognizes that entertaining Epstein’s ideas related to philanthropy gave Epstein an undeserved platform that was at odds with Gates’s personal values and the values of his foundation.’ 

Melinda also writes in the memoir that the night she asked Bill to move out was ‘one of the scariest conversations I’ve ever had’. 

It came after they took a trip to Santa Fe in New Mexico in February 2020, in a final attempt to try to save their marriage. 

The billionaire philanthropist said she suffered frequent panic attacks during the divorce negotiations, to the point she had to call her therapist in the middle of the night. 

When asked when she last had a panic attack, she told the Times: ‘Probably during the negotiations of my divorce. 

‘When you’re leaving a marriage, it’s very, very hard. And the negotiations were tough.’ 

Melinda and Bill Gates separated in May 2021 after 27 years of marriage and having three children together, receiving an estimated settlement of $12.5billion from one of the world’s richest men. 

Melinda separated from the Microsoft founder in May 2021 after 27 years of marriage and having three children together, receiving an estimated settlement of $12.5billion from one of the world’s richest men

Melinda Gates and Bill Gates attend The Robin Hood Foundation’s 2018 benefit at Jacob Javitz Center on May 14, 2018 in New York City 

Along with the revelations that emerged about Bill’s relationship with Jeffrey Epstein, the marriage also broke down amid rumors he had affairs with a Microsoft employee in 2000 and a young Russian bridge player 10 years later. 

Melinda is still based in Seattle and now runs a glitzy philanthropy organization called Pivotal Ventures in the city. 

The former couple share three children together – Jennifer, 28, Rory, 25, and Phoebe, 22. 

Jennifer has two children with her husband Nayel Nassar. 

Bill said he would be leaving his children less than one percent of his fortune – but this still amounts to $500million each.  

Melinda spoke with the Times at the headquarters of her company, Pivotal Ventures, in Redmond on the outskirts of Seattle, Washington.  

She founded Pivotal Ventures in 2015 while co-running the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation. 

They separated in 2021, and she resigned from the foundation in 2024 to focus on Pivotal, which aims to accelerate social progress and advance women’s power and influence.