Influencer Calls Out Bill Gates’s Daughter Trying to Negotiate Rates With a 'Super Limited' Budget

Influencer Kacie Margis has called out Bill Gates's daughter after allegedly receiving a DM. negotiating rates.

A private DM allegedly sent by Bill Gates’s daughter, Phoebe Gates, has sent the influencer world into debate today.

Influencer Kacie Margis shared a post on Threads with a screenshot of a DM she claimed was from billionaire Bill Gates’s daughter.

“When a billionaire’s daughter says the budget is ✨super limited✨ and it’s a ‘scrappy little startup’ to try to pay me less than what my posted rates are,” she wrote on Threads.

In the message, Gates reportedly describes her company as a “scrappy startup,” inviting the creator to work together while nudging the conversation off Collabstr, which was the platform where the outreach began.

The comments are mostly in shock, but it does pose a question to the influencer marketing world: what does fair pay actually mean anymore?

Bill Gates is one of the wealthiest people alive, but does that mean his daughter has access to his fortune? He has already publicly stated that he will be leaving less than 1% of his wealth to his family in his will. However, that still equates to over $1 billion.

Creators are calling it out as a classic play: downplay resources, appeal to exposure, and move negotiations off-platform. But this time, it’s coming from someone with one of the most recognisable last names in tech.

When the daughter of Bill Gates frames a venture as cash-strapped, it hits differently in an industry where smaller creators are constantly asked to do more for less.

When we asked Margis what she replied, she sent an email with her Collabstr rates.

“I replied saying I'd follow up over email and I sent her an email with my Collabstr rates. I've received numerous DMs from big brands and celebrities over the years.”

Some are defending the approach, arguing that not every startup operates with unlimited cash. Others say that’s missing the point entirely: transparency and fair compensation shouldn’t depend on who’s asking.

Perhaps personal outreach wasn't the best way to go this time.