Who is Melinda French Gates? Pivotal Ventures founder presents answers for ‘Jeopardy’ category

Melinda French Gates during her appearance on the television game show “Jeopardy” on Monday. (Twitter screen grab via @melindagates)

Melinda French Gates played a pivotal role on “Jeopardy” on Monday night, serving as the answer reader for a Double Jeopardy category titled “Pivotal Women.”

The category was a nod to Pivotal Ventures, the Seattle-based company that French Gates founded in 2015 to accelerate the pace of social progress in the U.S.

The appearance came during a semifinal round of “Jeopardy’s” ongoing High School Reunion Tournament, in which college-age players have returned to the show a few years after first appearing during high school.

“I’m Melinda French Gates, co-chair of the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and founder of Pivotal Ventures,” French Gates said as she introduced the category in a taped video message. “In honor of women’s history month, I’ll present clues about women who’ve helped make the world more equal.”

The round also included categories such as “The Tech Beat,” “Pop Music” and “More Than One Meaning.”

Contestants Claire, Justin and Stephanie were more eager to test their musical knowledge before eventually wading into the Pivotal Women answers, which ended up featuring the last clue chosen to close the the round.

Correct questions about women in the category included Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg; Me Too movement founder Tarana Burke; NASA mathematician Katherine Johnson; Pakistani activist Malala; and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Audrey Sarin, a 2019 graduate of Forest Ridge School of the Sacred Heart in Bellevue, Wash., was among those competing in the tournament, The Seattle Times reported last month. Sarin is now a senior at Cal Poly-San Luis Obispo.