Amber Rudd, Bill Gates to give up their roles as CEO and Chairman of Nike, Amazon and Facebook in 2019

Amber Rudd and Bill Gates have announced they will quit their roles at Apple, Amazon, and Facebook next year.

Rudd said on Monday that she and Gates would not be attending the annual meeting of the World Economic Forum in Davos, Switzerland, which will be held in March 2020.

“I’m leaving the leadership roles and I’m leaving Apple, and I don’t think it’s appropriate for me to be there, I’m not really a part of that,” she told reporters in an interview.

“We’re not going to be able to do the things that we’re really passionate about,” she added.

“That’s not something that we have any plans to do any time soon.”

Rudd, who became prime minister last month, is set to become the first female head of an international business, with the former Microsoft chief executive and philanthropist serving as the company’s CEO and chairman.

The two women will not be on stage for the annual Davos gathering, which is attended by world leaders from around the world.

But they have both been seen as a rising star within the tech industry.

Rivers is the first woman to lead the Microsoft in the tech world, after Steve Ballmer left the company in 2015, and Gates is widely credited with leading Microsoft through the dot-com crash.

Bill Gates is pictured with Amber Rudd during a Microsoft press conference in Davao, Davao City, South Korea, November 14, 2018.

REUTERS/Damir SagoljThe announcement of their exit comes after years of speculation about the two companies’ future.

Gates has said in recent months he will not return to Microsoft.

But Rudd said last week that the two women had decided not to return.

She told reporters: “I’m going to say that it’s a decision that I have made for myself.”

The announcement comes as the two tech giants have been embroiled in controversy.

Last month, a leaked memo was published by WikiLeaks, which revealed the CEOs of both Microsoft and Apple had been discussing the possibility of merging, with one saying: “The only way to have a truly global company is to make all of its employees globally available.”

Apple said on Sunday it was withdrawing its invitation to the Davos meeting.

“Our commitment to the global economy has been clear for years, and we are grateful for the opportunity to continue to support the global conversation around digital innovation,” the company said.

Microsoft declined to comment on the leaked memo, saying the company did not comment on internal communications.Reuters