Microsoft Corporation said Zain Nadella, son of Chief Executive Officer Satya Nadella, died Monday morning. He was 26 years old and had been born with cerebral palsy.
What is Cerebral palsy?
A cerebral palsy is a group of disorders that affect movement and muscle tone or posture. It's caused by damage that occurs to the immature, developing brain, most often before birth.
Cerebral means having to do with the brain. Palsy means weakness or problems with using the muscles. CP is caused by abnormal brain development or damage to the developing brain that affects a person’s ability to control his or her muscles.
The symptoms of this disease vary from person to person.
Satya Nadella told its executive staff in an email that Zain had passed away. The message asked executives to hold the family in their thoughts and prayers while giving them space to grieve privately, the report said.
“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,” Jeff Sperring, CEO of Children’s Hospital.
In 1992, Nadella married Anupama, the daughter of his father's IAS batchmate. The couple has three children, a son and two daughters.
He is the executive chairman and CEO of Microsoft, succeeding Steve Ballmer in 2014 as CEO and John W. Thompson in 2021 as chairman. In 2022, Nadella was awarded Padma Bhushan, the third-highest civilian award in India by the Government of India.