Sir Timothy John Berners-Lee (born 8 June 1955),
also known as TimBL, is an English
computer scientist
A computer scientist is a person who is trained in the academic study of computer science.
Computer scientists typically work on the theoretical side of computation, as opposed to the hardware side on which computer engineers mainly focus (al ...
best known as the inventor of the
World Wide Web
The World Wide Web (WWW), commonly known as the Web, is an information system enabling documents and other web resources to be accessed over the Internet.
Documents and downloadable media are made available to the network through web se ...
. He is a
Professorial Fellow
A research fellow is an academic research position at a university or a similar research institution, usually for academic staff or faculty members. A research fellow may act either as an independent investigator or under the supervision of a pr ...
of Computer Science at the
University of Oxford
, mottoeng = The Lord is my light
, established =
, endowment = £6.1 billion (including colleges) (2019)
, budget = £2.145 billion (2019–20)
, chancellor ...
and a professor at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
(MIT). Berners-Lee proposed an information management system on 12 March 1989, then implemented the first successful communication between a
Hypertext Transfer Protocol (HTTP) client and
server
Server may refer to:
Computing
*Server (computing), a computer program or a device that provides functionality for other programs or devices, called clients
Role
* Waiting staff, those who work at a restaurant or a bar attending customers and su ...
via the
Internet
The Internet (or internet) is the global system of interconnected computer networks that uses the Internet protocol suite (TCP/IP) to communicate between networks and devices. It is a '' network of networks'' that consists of private, pub ...
in mid-November.
Berners-Lee is the director of the
World Wide Web Consortium
The World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) is the main international standards organization for the World Wide Web. Founded in 1994 and led by Tim Berners-Lee, the consortium is made up of member organizations that maintain full-time staff working ...
(W3C), which oversees the continued development of the Web. He co-founded (with his then wife-to-be
Rosemary Leith) the
World Wide Web Foundation
The World Wide Web Foundation, also known as the Web Foundation, is a US-based international nonprofit organization advocating for a free and open web for everyone. It was cofounded by Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and R ...
. He is a senior researcher and holder of the
3Com
3Com Corporation was an American digital electronics manufacturer best known for its computer network products. The company was co-founded in 1979 by Robert Metcalfe, Howard Charney and others. Bill Krause joined as President in 1981. Metcalfe ex ...
founder's chair at the
MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory
Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL) is a research institute at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) formed by the 2003 merger of the Laboratory for Computer Science (LCS) and the Artificial Intelligence Lab ...
(CSAIL). He is a director of the
Web Science Research Initiative
Web most often refers to:
* Spider web, a silken structure created by the animal
* World Wide Web or the Web, an Internet-based hypertext system
Web, WEB, or the Web may also refer to:
Computing
* WEB, a literate programming system created by ...
(WSRI) and a member of the advisory board of the
MIT Center for Collective Intelligence The MIT Center for Collective Intelligence (CCI) is a research center at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, headed by Professor Thomas W. Malone, that focuses on the study of collective intelligence.
The Center for Collective Intelligence b ...
. In 2011, he was named as a member of the board of trustees of the
Ford Foundation
The Ford Foundation is an American private foundation with the stated goal of advancing human welfare. Created in 1936 by Edsel Ford and his father Henry Ford, it was originally funded by a US$25,000 gift from Edsel Ford. By 1947, after the death ...
. He is a founder and president of the
Open Data Institute
The Open Data Institute (ODI) is a non-profit private company limited by guarantee, based in the United Kingdom. Founded by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Sir Nigel Shadbolt in 2012, the ODI’s mission is to connect, equip and inspire people around th ...
and is currently an advisor at social network
MeWe
MeWe is a global social media and social networking service owned by Sgrouples, a company based in Los Angeles, California. The site's interface has been described as similar to that of Facebook, although the service describes itself as the "an ...
.
He devised and implemented the first Web browser and Web server, and helped foster the Web's subsequent explosive development. He currently directs the W3 Consortium, developing tools and standards to further the Web's potential. In April 2009, he was elected as
Foreign Associate of the National Academy of Sciences
Membership of the National Academy of Sciences is an award granted to scientists that the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) of the United States judges to have made “distinguished and continuing achievements in original research”. Membership i ...
.
In 2004, Berners-Lee was knighted by Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
for his pioneering work.
He was named in ''Time'' magazine's list of the
100 Most Important People of the 20th century and has received a
number of other accolades for his invention.
He was honoured as the "Inventor of the World Wide Web" during the
2012 Summer Olympics opening ceremony in which he appeared working with a vintage
NeXT Computer
NeXT Computer (also called the NeXT Computer System) is a workstation computer that was developed, marketed, and sold by NeXT Inc. It was introduced in October 1988 as the company's first and flagship product, at a price of , aimed at the hig ...
.
He tweeted "This is for everyone"
which appeared in LED lights attached to the chairs of the audience.
He received the 2016
Turing Award
The ACM A. M. Turing Award is an annual prize given by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. It is generally recognized as the highest distinction in compu ...
"for inventing the World Wide Web, the first web browser, and the fundamental protocols and algorithms allowing the Web to scale".
Early life and education
Berners-Lee was born on 8 June 1955 in London, England,
the eldest of the four children of
Mary Lee Woods
Mary Lee Berners-Lee ('' née'' Woods; 12 March 1924 – 29 November 2017) was an English mathematician and computer scientist who worked in a team that developed programs in the Department of Computer Science, University of Manchester Mark 1, ...
and
Conway Berners-Lee
Conway Maurice Berners-Lee (19 September 1921 – 1 February 2019) was an English mathematician and computer scientist who worked as a member of the team that developed the Ferranti Mark 1, the world's first commercial stored program electronic ...
; his brother
Mike
Mike may refer to:
Animals
* Mike (cat), cat and guardian of the British Museum
* Mike the Headless Chicken, chicken that lived for 18 months after his head had been cut off
* Mike (chimpanzee), a chimpanzee featured in several books and docume ...
is a professor of ecology and climate change management. His parents were computer scientists who worked on the first commercially built computer, the
Ferranti Mark 1
The Ferranti Mark 1, also known as the Manchester Electronic Computer in its sales literature, and thus sometimes called the Manchester Ferranti, was produced by British electrical engineering firm Ferranti Ltd. It was the world's first commer ...
. He attended Sheen Mount Primary School, and then went on to attend south-west London's
Emanuel School from 1969 to 1973, at the time a
direct grant grammar school
A direct grant grammar school was a type of selective secondary school in the United Kingdom that existed between 1945 and 1976. One quarter of the places in these schools were directly funded by central government, while the remainder attracted ...
, which became an
independent school
An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...
in 1975.
[ ] A keen
trainspotter
A railfan, rail buff or train buff (American English), railway enthusiast, railway buff or trainspotter (Australian/British English), or ferroequinologist is a person who is recreationally interested in trains and rail transport systems.
Rail ...
as a child, he learnt about electronics from tinkering with a model railway. He studied at
The Queen's College, Oxford
The Queen's College is a Colleges of the University of Oxford, constituent college of the University of Oxford, England. The college was founded in 1341 by Robert de Eglesfield in honour of Philippa of Hainault. It is distinguished by its pred ...
, from 1973 to 1976, where he received a
first-class Bachelor of Arts
Bachelor of arts (BA or AB; from the Latin ', ', or ') is a bachelor's degree awarded for an undergraduate program in the arts, or, in some cases, other disciplines. A Bachelor of Arts degree course is generally completed in three or four years ...
degree in physics.
While at university, Berners-Lee made a computer out of an old
television set
A television set or television receiver, more commonly called the television, TV, TV set, telly, tele, or tube, is a device that combines a tuner, display, and loudspeakers, for the purpose of viewing and hearing television broadcasts, or using ...
, which he bought from a repair shop.
Career and research
![Tim Berners-Lee](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f8/Tim_Berners-Lee.jpg)
After graduation, Berners-Lee worked as an engineer at the telecommunications company
Plessey
The Plessey Company plc was a British electronics, defence and telecommunications company. It originated in 1917, growing and diversifying into electronics. It expanded after World War II by acquisition of companies and formed overseas compani ...
in
Poole
Poole () is a large coastal town and seaport in Dorset, on the south coast of England. The town is east of Dorchester and adjoins Bournemouth to the east. Since 1 April 2019, the local authority is Bournemouth, Christchurch and Poole Counc ...
, Dorset.
In 1978, he joined D. G. Nash in
Ferndown
Ferndown is a town and civil parish in Dorset in southern England, immediately to the north of Bournemouth and Poole. The parish, which until 1972 was called ''Hampreston'', includes the communities of Hampreston, Longham, Stapehill and Trick ...
, Dorset, where he helped create typesetting software for printers.
Berners-Lee worked as an
independent contractor
Employment is a relationship between two parties regulating the provision of paid labour services. Usually based on a contract, one party, the employer, which might be a corporation, a not-for-profit organization, a co-operative, or any oth ...
at
CERN
The European Organization for Nuclear Research, known as CERN (; ; ), is an intergovernmental organization that operates the largest particle physics laboratory in the world. Established in 1954, it is based in a northwestern suburb of Gene ...
from June to December 1980. While in
Geneva
Geneva ( ; french: Genève ) frp, Genèva ; german: link=no, Genf ; it, Ginevra ; rm, Genevra is the List of cities in Switzerland, second-most populous city in Switzerland (after Zürich) and the most populous city of Romandy, the French-speaki ...
, he proposed a project based on the concept of
hypertext
Hypertext is E-text, text displayed on a computer display or other electronic devices with references (hyperlinks) to other text that the reader can immediately access. Hypertext documents are interconnected by hyperlinks, which are typi ...
, to facilitate sharing and updating information among researchers. To demonstrate it, he built a prototype system named
ENQUIRE
ENQUIRE was a software project written in 1980 by Tim Berners-Lee at CERN, which was the predecessor to the World Wide Web. It was a simple hypertext program that had some of the same ideas as the Web and the Semantic Web but was different in ...
.
After leaving CERN in late 1980, he went to work at John Poole's Image Computer Systems, Ltd, in Bournemouth, Dorset.
He ran the company's technical side for three years. The project he worked on was a "
real-time
Real-time or real time describes various operations in computing or other processes that must guarantee response times within a specified time (deadline), usually a relatively short time. A real-time process is generally one that happens in defined ...
remote procedure call
In distributed computing, a remote procedure call (RPC) is when a computer program causes a procedure ( subroutine) to execute in a different address space (commonly on another computer on a shared network), which is coded as if it were a normal ( ...
" which gave him experience in
computer network
A computer network is a set of computers sharing resources located on or provided by network nodes. The computers use common communication protocols over digital interconnections to communicate with each other. These interconnections are ...
ing.
In 1984, he returned to CERN as a fellow.
In 1989, CERN was the largest Internet node in Europe and Berners-Lee saw an opportunity to join hypertext with the Internet:
![First Web Server](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d1/First_Web_Server.jpg)
Berners-Lee wrote his proposal in March 1989 and, in 1990, redistributed it. It then was accepted by his manager, Mike Sendall, who called his proposals "vague, but exciting".
Robert Cailliau
Robert Cailliau (, born 26 January 1947) is a Belgian informatics engineer, computer scientist and author who proposed the first (pre-www) hypertext system for CERN in 1987 and collaborated with Tim Berners-Lee on the World Wide Web (jointly wi ...
had independently proposed a project to develop a hypertext system at CERN, and joined Berners-Lee as a partner in his efforts to get the web off the ground.
They used similar ideas to those underlying the ENQUIRE system to create the World Wide Web, for which Berners-Lee designed and built the first
web browser
A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used on ...
. His software also functioned as an editor (called
WorldWideWeb
WorldWideWeb (later renamed Nexus to avoid confusion between the software and the World Wide Web) is the first web browser and web page editor. It was discontinued in 1994. It was the first WYSIWYG HTML editor.
The source code was released in ...
, running on the
NeXTSTEP
NeXTSTEP is a discontinued object-oriented, multitasking operating system based on the Mach kernel and the UNIX-derived BSD. It was developed by NeXT Computer in the late 1980s and early 1990s and was initially used for its range of proprieta ...
operating system), and the first Web server,
CERN HTTPd (short for Hypertext Transfer Protocol
daemon
Daimon or Daemon (Ancient Greek: , "god", "godlike", "power", "fate") originally referred to a lesser deity or guiding spirit such as the daimons of ancient Greek religion and Greek mythology, mythology and of later Hellenistic religion and Hell ...
).
Berners-Lee published the first web site, which described the project itself, on 20 December 1990; it was available to the Internet from the CERN network. The site provided an explanation of what the World Wide Web was, and how people could use a browser and set up a web server, as well as how to get started with your own website.
On 6 August 1991, Berners-Lee first posted, on
Usenet
Usenet () is a worldwide distributed discussion system available on computers. It was developed from the general-purpose Unix-to-Unix Copy (UUCP) dial-up network architecture. Tom Truscott and Jim Ellis conceived the idea in 1979, and it was ...
, a public invitation for collaboration with the WorldWideWeb project.
In a list of 80 cultural moments that shaped the world, chosen by a panel of 25 eminent scientists, academics, writers and world leaders, the invention of the World Wide Web was ranked number one, with the entry stating, "The fastest growing communications medium of all time, the Internet has changed the shape of modern life forever. We can connect with each other instantly, all over the world."
In 1994, Berners-Lee founded the W3C at the
Massachusetts Institute of Technology
The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private land-grant research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Established in 1861, MIT has played a key role in the development of modern technology and science, and is one of the ...
. It comprised various companies that were willing to create standards and recommendations to improve the quality of the Web. Berners-Lee made his idea available freely, with no patent and no royalties due. The World Wide Web Consortium decided that its standards should be based on royalty-free technology, so that they easily could be adopted by anyone.
Berners-Lee participated in Curl Corp's attempt to develop and promote the
Curl programming language
Curl is a reflective object-oriented programming language for interactive web applications whose goal is to provide a smoother transition between formatting and programming. It makes it possible to embed complex objects in simple documents withou ...
.
In 2001, Berners-Lee became a patron of the East Dorset Heritage Trust, having previously lived in
Colehill
Colehill is a parish, neighbouring Wimborne Minster, in Dorset, England, with a population of 7,000 (2001), reducing slightly to 6,927 at the 2011 census.
History
The name Colehill originated in 1431 as Colhulle, becoming Colhill in 1518 a ...
in
Wimborne
Wimborne Minster (often referred to as Wimborne, ) is a market town in Dorset in South West England, and the name of the Church of England church in that town. It lies at the confluence of the River Stour and the River Allen, north of Poole ...
,
East Dorset
East Dorset was a local government district in Dorset, England. Its council met in Wimborne Minster between 2016 and 2019.
The district (as Wimborne) was formed on 1 April 1974 by merging Wimborne Minster Urban District with Wimborne and Cran ...
. In December 2004, he accepted a chair in computer science at the School of Electronics and Computer Science,
University of Southampton
, mottoeng = The Heights Yield to Endeavour
, type = Public research university
, established = 1862 – Hartley Institution1902 – Hartley University College1913 – Southampton University Coll ...
, Hampshire, to work on the
Semantic Web.
In a ''
Times
Time is the continued sequence of existence and events, and a fundamental quantity of measuring systems.
Time or times may also refer to:
Temporal measurement
* Time in physics, defined by its measurement
* Time standard, civil time speci ...
'' article in October 2009, Berners-Lee admitted that
the initial pair of slashes ("//") in a web address were "unnecessary". He told the newspaper that he easily could have designed web addresses without the slashes. "There you go, it seemed like a good idea at the time," he said in his lighthearted apology.
Policy work
![timbernerslee](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/7a/Timbernerslee.jpg)
In June 2009, then-British prime minister
Gordon Brown
James Gordon Brown (born 20 February 1951) is a British former politician who served as Prime Minister of the United Kingdom and Leader of the Labour Party (UK), Leader of the Labour Party from 2007 to 2010. He previously served as Chance ...
announced that Berners-Lee would work with the
UK government
ga, Rialtas a Shoilse gd, Riaghaltas a Mhòrachd
, image = HM Government logo.svg
, image_size = 220px
, image2 = Royal Coat of Arms of the United Kingdom (HM Government).svg
, image_size2 = 180px
, caption = Royal Arms
, date_es ...
to help make data more open and accessible on the Web, building on the work of the Power of Information Task Force. Berners-Lee and Professor
Nigel Shadbolt
Sir Nigel Richard Shadbolt (born 9 April 1956) is Principal of Jesus College, Oxford, and Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford. He is Chairman of the Open Data Institute which he co-founded ...
are the two key figures behind
data.gov.uk
data.gov.uk is a UK Government project to make available non-personal UK government data as open data. It was launched in closed beta in September 2009 and publicly launched in January 2010. As of February 2015 it contained over 19,343 datasets, r ...
, a UK government project to open up almost all data acquired for official purposes for free reuse. Commenting on the opening up of
Ordnance Survey
, nativename_a =
, nativename_r =
, logo = Ordnance Survey 2015 Logo.svg
, logo_width = 240px
, logo_caption =
, seal =
, seal_width =
, seal_caption =
, picture =
, picture_width =
, picture_caption =
, formed =
, preceding1 =
, di ...
data in April 2010, Berners-Lee said: "The changes signal a wider cultural change in government based on an assumption that information should be in the public domain unless there is a good reason not to—not the other way around." He went on to say: "Greater openness, accountability and transparency in Government will give people greater choice and make it easier for individuals to get more directly involved in issues that matter to them."
![Berners-Lee announcing W3F](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c3/Berners-Lee_announcing_W3F.jpg)
In November 2009, Berners-Lee launched the
World Wide Web Foundation
The World Wide Web Foundation, also known as the Web Foundation, is a US-based international nonprofit organization advocating for a free and open web for everyone. It was cofounded by Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and R ...
(WWWF) in order to campaign to "advance the Web to empower humanity by launching transformative programs that build local capacity to leverage the Web as a medium for positive change".
Berners-Lee is one of the pioneer voices in favour of
net neutrality
Network neutrality, often referred to as net neutrality, is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) must treat all Internet communications equally, offering users and online content providers consistent rates irrespective of co ...
, and has expressed the view that
ISP
An Internet service provider (ISP) is an organization that provides services for accessing, using, or participating in the Internet. ISPs can be organized in various forms, such as commercial, community-owned, non-profit, or otherwise private ...
s should supply "connectivity with no strings attached", and should neither control nor monitor the browsing activities of customers without their expressed consent. He advocates the idea that net neutrality is a kind of human network right: "Threats to the Internet, such as companies or governments that interfere with or snoop on Internet traffic, compromise basic human network rights." Berners-Lee participated in an open letter to the US Federal Communications Commission (FCC). He and 20 other Internet pioneers urged the FCC to cancel a vote on 14 December 2017 to uphold net neutrality. The letter was addressed to Senator
Roger Wicker
Roger Frederick Wicker (born July 5, 1951) is an American attorney and politician serving as the senior United States senator from Mississippi, in office since 2007. A member of the Republican Party, Wicker previously served as a member of the ...
, Senator
Brian Schatz, Representative
Marsha Blackburn
Mary Marsha Blackburn (née Wedgeworth; born June 6, 1952) is an American politician and businesswoman serving as the senior United States senator from Tennessee, a seat she has held since 2019. She is a member of the Republican Party. Blackbur ...
and Representative Michael F. Doyle.
![This is for Everyone](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/This_is_for_Everyone.jpg)
Berners-Lee joined the board of advisors of start-up
State.com, based in London.
As of May 2012, he is president of the
Open Data Institute
The Open Data Institute (ODI) is a non-profit private company limited by guarantee, based in the United Kingdom. Founded by Sir Tim Berners-Lee and Sir Nigel Shadbolt in 2012, the ODI’s mission is to connect, equip and inspire people around th ...
, which he co-founded with
Nigel Shadbolt
Sir Nigel Richard Shadbolt (born 9 April 1956) is Principal of Jesus College, Oxford, and Professorial Research Fellow in the Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford. He is Chairman of the Open Data Institute which he co-founded ...
in 2012.
The
Alliance for Affordable Internet
The Alliance for Affordable Internet (A4AI) is an initiative to make the Internet more affordable to people around the world. The World Wide Web Foundation serves as the Secretariat, and major members of coalition include Google, the Omidyar Netwo ...
(A4AI) was launched in October 2013 and Berners-Lee is leading the coalition of public and private organisations that includes
Google
Google LLC () is an American multinational technology company focusing on search engine technology, online advertising, cloud computing, computer software, quantum computing, e-commerce, artificial intelligence, and consumer electronics. ...
,
Facebook
Facebook is an online social media and social networking service owned by American company Meta Platforms. Founded in 2004 by Mark Zuckerberg with fellow Harvard College students and roommates Eduardo Saverin, Andrew McCollum, Dustin M ...
,
Intel
Intel Corporation is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Santa Clara, California. It is the world's largest semiconductor chip manufacturer by revenue, and is one of the developers of the x86 seri ...
and
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
. The A4AI seeks to make Internet access more affordable so that access is broadened in the developing world, where only 31% of people are online. Berners-Lee will work with those aiming to decrease Internet access prices so that they fall below the
UN Broadband Commission's worldwide target of 5% of monthly income.
Berners-Lee holds the founders chair in Computer Science at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he heads the Decentralized Information Group and is leading
Solid
Solid is one of the State of matter#Four fundamental states, four fundamental states of matter (the others being liquid, gas, and Plasma (physics), plasma). The molecules in a solid are closely packed together and contain the least amount o ...
, a joint project with the
Qatar Computing Research Institute
The Qatar Computing Research Institute (QCRI) in Doha, Qatar, is a nonprofit multidisciplinary computing research institute founded by the Qatar Foundation (QF) for Education, Science and Community Development in 2010. It is primarily funded by t ...
that aims to radically change the way Web applications work today, resulting in true data ownership as well as improved privacy. In October 2016, he joined the
Department of Computer Science at
Oxford University
Oxford () is a city in England. It is the county town and only city of Oxfordshire. In 2020, its population was estimated at 151,584. It is north-west of London, south-east of Birmingham and north-east of Bristol. The city is home to the ...
as a professorial research fellow and as a
fellow
A fellow is a concept whose exact meaning depends on context.
In learned or professional societies, it refers to a privileged member who is specially elected in recognition of their work and achievements.
Within the context of higher education ...
of
Christ Church, one of the Oxford colleges.
![At the Science Museum for the Web@30 event, March 2019 23](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/At_the_Science_Museum_for_the_Web%4030_event%2C_March_2019_23.jpg)
From the mid 2010s Berners-Lee initially remained neutral on the emerging
Encrypted Media Extensions
Encrypted Media Extensions (EME) is a W3C specification for providing a communication channel between web browsers and the Content Decryption Module (CDM) software which implements digital rights management (DRM). This allows the use of HTML5 vi ...
(EME) proposal for with its controversial
Digital Rights Management
Digital rights management (DRM) is the management of legal access to digital content. Various tools or technological protection measures (TPM) such as access control technologies can restrict the use of proprietary hardware and copyrighted works. ...
(DRM) implications.
In March 2017 he felt he had to take a position which was to support the EME proposal.
He reasoned EME's virtues whilst noting DRM was inevitable.
As W3C director, he went on to approve the finalised specification in July 2017.
His stance was opposed by some including
Electronic Frontier Foundation
The Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) is an international non-profit digital rights group based in San Francisco, California. The foundation was formed on 10 July 1990 by John Gilmore, John Perry Barlow and Mitch Kapor to promote Internet ci ...
(EFF), the anti-DRM campaign
Defective by Design
Defective by Design (DBD) is an anti-DRM initiative by the Free Software Foundation. Digital rights management (DRM) technology restricts users' ability to freely use their purchased movies, music, literature, software, and hardware in ways th ...
and the
Free Software Foundation
The Free Software Foundation (FSF) is a 501(c)#501(c)(3), 501(c)(3) non-profit organization founded by Richard Stallman on October 4, 1985, to support the free software movement, with the organization's preference for software being distributed ...
.
Varied concerns raised included being not supportive of the Internet's open philosophy against commercial interests and risks of users being forced to use a particular
web browser
A web browser is application software for accessing websites. When a user requests a web page from a particular website, the browser retrieves its files from a web server and then displays the page on the user's screen. Browsers are used on ...
to view specific DRM content.
The EFF raised a formal appeal which did not succeed and the EME specification became a formal W3C recommendation in September 2017.
On 30 September 2018, Berners-Lee announced his new
open-source startup Inrupt to fuel a commercial ecosystem around the
Solid
Solid is one of the State of matter#Four fundamental states, four fundamental states of matter (the others being liquid, gas, and Plasma (physics), plasma). The molecules in a solid are closely packed together and contain the least amount o ...
project, which aims to give users more control over their personal data and lets them choose where the data goes, who's allowed to see certain elements and which apps are allowed to see that data.
In November 2019 at the
Internet Governance Forum
The Internet Governance Forum (IGF) is a multistakeholder governance group for policy dialogue on issues of Internet governance. It brings together all stakeholders in the Internet governance debate, whether they represent governments, the priv ...
in Berlin Berners-Lee and the WWWF launched ''
Contract for the Web'', a campaign initiative to persuade governments, companies and citizens to commit to nine principles to stop "misuse", with the warning that "if we don't act nowand act togetherto prevent the web being misused by those who want to exploit, divide and undermine, we are at risk of squandering
ts potential for good.
Awards and honours
Berners-Lee has received many awards and honours. He was
knighted by Queen
Elizabeth II
Elizabeth II (Elizabeth Alexandra Mary; 21 April 1926 – 8 September 2022) was Queen of the United Kingdom and other Commonwealth realms from 6 February 1952 until her death in 2022. She was queen regnant of 32 sovereign states during ...
in the
2004 New Year Honours "for services to the global development of the Internet", and was invested formally on 16 July 2004.
On 13 June 2007, he was appointed to the
Order of Merit (OM), an order restricted to 24 (living) members. Bestowing membership of the Order of Merit is within the personal purview of the Queen and does not require recommendation by ministers or the Prime Minister.
He was elected a
Fellow of the Royal Society (FRS) in 2001.
He was also elected as a member into the
American Philosophical Society
The American Philosophical Society (APS), founded in 1743 in Philadelphia, is a scholarly organization that promotes knowledge in the sciences and humanities through research, professional meetings, publications, library resources, and communit ...
in 2004 and the
National Academy of Engineering
The National Academy of Engineering (NAE) is an American nonprofit, non-governmental organization. The National Academy of Engineering is part of the National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine, along with the National Academy ...
in 2007.
He has been conferred honorary degrees from a number of universities around the world, including
Manchester
Manchester () is a city in Greater Manchester, England. It had a population of 552,000 in 2021. It is bordered by the Cheshire Plain to the south, the Pennines to the north and east, and the neighbouring city of Salford to the west. The t ...
(his parents worked on the
Manchester Mark 1
The Manchester Mark 1 was one of the earliest stored-program computers, developed at the Victoria University of Manchester, England from the Manchester Baby (operational in June 1948). Work began in August 1948, and the first version was oper ...
in the 1940s),
Harvard
Harvard University is a private Ivy League research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts. Founded in 1636 as Harvard College and named for its first benefactor, the Puritan clergyman John Harvard, it is the oldest institution of higher le ...
and
Yale
Yale University is a private research university in New Haven, Connecticut. Established in 1701 as the Collegiate School, it is the third-oldest institution of higher education in the United States and among the most prestigious in the wor ...
.
In 2012, Berners-Lee was among the
British cultural icons selected by artist
Sir Peter Blake to appear in a new version of his most famous artwork – the Beatles' ''
Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band'' album cover – to celebrate the British cultural figures of his life that he most admires to mark his 80th birthday.
In 2013, he was awarded the inaugural
Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering
The Queen Elizabeth Prize for Engineering, also known as the QEPrize, is a global prize for engineering and innovation. The prize was launched in 2012 by a cross-party group consisting of David Cameron, Nick Clegg, and Ed Miliband, then Prime M ...
. On 4 April 2017, he received the 2016 ACM
Turing Award
The ACM A. M. Turing Award is an annual prize given by the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM) for contributions of lasting and major technical importance to computer science. It is generally recognized as the highest distinction in compu ...
"for inventing the World Wide Web, the first web browser, and the fundamental protocols and algorithms allowing the Web to scale".
Personal life
Berners-Lee has said "I like to keep work and personal life separate."
Berners-Lee married Nancy Carlson, an American computer programmer, in 1990. She was also working in Switzerland at the
World Health Organization
The World Health Organization (WHO) is a specialized agency of the United Nations responsible for international public health. The WHO Constitution states its main objective as "the attainment by all peoples of the highest possible level of h ...
. They had two children and divorced in 2011. In 2014, he married
Rosemary Leith at the
Chapel Royal
The Chapel Royal is an establishment in the Royal Household serving the spiritual needs of the sovereign and the British Royal Family. Historically it was a body of priests and singers that travelled with the monarch. The term is now also applie ...
,
St. James's Palace in London. Leith is a Canadian Internet and banking entrepreneur and a founding director of Berners-Lee's
World Wide Web Foundation
The World Wide Web Foundation, also known as the Web Foundation, is a US-based international nonprofit organization advocating for a free and open web for everyone. It was cofounded by Tim Berners-Lee, the inventor of the World Wide Web, and R ...
. The couple also collaborate on venture capital to support artificial intelligence companies.
Berners-Lee was raised as an
Anglican
Anglicanism is a Western Christian tradition that has developed from the practices, liturgy, and identity of the Church of England following the English Reformation, in the context of the Protestant Reformation in Europe. It is one of th ...
, but he turned away from religion in his youth. After he became a parent, he became a
Unitarian Universalist
Unitarian or Unitarianism may refer to:
Christian and Christian-derived theologies
A Unitarian is a follower of, or a member of an organisation that follows, any of several theologies referred to as Unitarianism:
* Unitarianism (1565–present) ...
(UU). When asked whether he believes in God, he stated: "Not in the sense of most people, I'm atheist and Unitarian Universalist."
The
web’s
source code
In computing, source code, or simply code, is any collection of code, with or without comments, written using a human-readable programming language, usually as plain text. The source code of a program is specially designed to facilitate the wo ...
was auctioned by
Sotheby’s
Sotheby's () is a British-founded American multinational corporation with headquarters in New York City. It is one of the world's largest brokers of fine and decorative art, jewellery, and collectibles. It has 80 locations in 40 countries, and ...
in
London
London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...
during 23–30 June 2021, as a
non-fungible token
A non-fungible token (NFT) is a unique digital identifier that cannot be copied, substituted, or subdivided, that is recorded in a blockchain, and that is used to certify authenticity and ownership. The ownership of an NFT is recorded in the b ...
(NFT) by TimBL.
Selling for USD $5,434,500,
it was reported the proceeds would be used to fund initiatives by TimBL and his wife,
Rosemary Leith.
References
Further reading
* ''Tim Berners-Lee's'
publications* ''Tim Berners-Lee and the Development of the World Wide Web (Unlocking the Secrets of Science)'' (Mitchell Lane Publishers, 2001),
* ''Tim Berners-Lee: Inventor of the World Wide Web (Ferguson's Career Biographies)'', Melissa Stewart (Ferguson Publishing Company, 2001), children's biography
* ''How the Web was Born: The Story of the World Wide Web'', Robert Cailliau, James Gillies, R. Cailliau (Oxford University Press, 2000),
* ''Weaving the Web: The Original Design and Ultimate Destiny of the World Wide Web by Its Inventor'', Tim Berners-Lee, Mark Fischetti (Paw Prints, 2008)
"Man Who Invented the World Wide Web Gives it New Definition" ''Compute Magazine'', 11 February 2011
BBC2 Newsnight – Transcript of video interview of Berners-Lee on the read/write Web
''Technology Review'' interview*
External links
*
*
*
Tim Berners-Leeon the W3C site
on W3C site
Interview with Tim Berners Lee*
*
{{DEFAULTSORT:Berners-Lee, Tim
1955 births
Living people
People from Barnes, London
People educated at Emanuel School
Alumni of The Queen's College, Oxford
Academics of the University of Southampton
Fellows of Christ Church, Oxford
Members of the Department of Computer Science, University of Oxford
People associated with CERN
English computer scientists
English expatriates in the United States
English inventors
English Unitarians
Fellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Fellows of the British Computer Society
Fellows of The Queen's College, Oxford
Fellows of the Royal Academy of Engineering
Fellows of the Royal Society
Hypertext Transfer Protocol
Internet pioneers
Knights Commander of the Order of the British Empire
MacArthur Fellows
Massachusetts Institute of Technology faculty
Members of the Order of Merit
Foreign associates of the National Academy of Engineering
Turing Award laureates
Foreign associates of the National Academy of Sciences
Royal Medal winners
Semantic Web people
UNESCO Niels Bohr Medal recipients
Unitarian Universalists
Former Anglicans
Webby Award winners
World Wide Web Consortium
Recipients of the Order of the Cross of Terra Mariana, 1st Class
English atheists
MIT Computer Science and Artificial Intelligence Laboratory people
Members of the American Philosophical Society
Honorary Fellows of the British Academy
Royal Designers for Industry