In what was certainly the marquee event at this year’s D: All Things Digital conference, an annual gathering coordinated by the Wall Street Journal, Steve Jobs shared the stage with Microsoft Chairman Bill Gates in a joint appearance discussing the technology industry’s past while looking ahead to its future.

The evening began with history repeating itself in the form of videos originally recorded in 1984, 1991 and 1997, in which the two men shared a stage. The video ended with Jobs and Gates entering from opposite ends of the D: All Things Digital stage.

Macworld: News: Live Coverage: Jobs and Gates joint appearance