Microsoft CEO's Son Dead at 26

Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella's young adult son died Monday, the company announced in an email to executive staff later confirmed by news outlets. Zain Nadella, who was 26, was born with cerebral palsy and needed care throughout his life, People reports. His parents, Satya and wife Anu, are grieving, the email 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 Seattle Children's Hospital, where Zain had received care, said in a message to Microsoft employees.

Zain, who was born at just three pounds, experienced asphyxiation in utero and was rushed to the Seattle Children's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit to save his life. "Today, he still requires specialized, around-the-clock care. He communicates nonverbally and uses a wheelchair," the family wrote last year when they established the Zain Nadella Endowed Chair in Pediatric Neurosciences as part of the hospital's Center for Integrative Brain Research. Satya Nadella says his focus on ensuring Microsoft can better serve users with disabilities stems from what he learned raising Zain, Bloomberg reports. The couple have two daughters who were born after Zain, Good Housekeeping reported in 2017. (More Satya Nadella stories.)