Dan Kohn facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Dan Kohn
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Kohn in 2016
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| Born | November 20, 1972 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, U.S.
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| Died | November 1, 2020 (aged 47) New York City, New York, U.S.
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| Education | Phillips Exeter Academy |
| Alma mater | Swarthmore College (B.S.) |
| Known for | First secure commercial transaction on the web |
| Spouse(s) | Julie Pullen |
| Children | 2 |
Dan Kohn (born November 20, 1972 – died November 1, 2020) was an American entrepreneur and leader in nonprofit organizations. He was known for his work with open source software and for helping to make the internet a safer place for shopping.
Kohn led the Linux Foundation's Public Health group. Before that, he was the executive director at Cloud Native Computing Foundation (CNCF). This group helps develop and support important cloud software like Kubernetes.
One of his biggest achievements was founding NetMarket. This company made the very first secure online purchase in 1994.
Contents
Early Life and School
Dan Kohn was born in Philadelphia on November 20, 1972. He went to Phillips Exeter Academy for high school. Later, he earned a bachelor's degree from Swarthmore College in 1994.
Career Highlights
NetMarket and Online Shopping
Dan Kohn was a co-founder and the first CEO of NetMarket. This was an early online store. On August 11, 1994, NetMarket made history. They sold a music CD by Sting to a customer in Philadelphia. This was the first time someone bought something online using a credit card with special security.
This security used a method called encryption. It made sure that private information, like credit card numbers, stayed secret. The New York Times newspaper called this a very important step for online shopping.
Other Projects
Kohn also worked at other companies. He was the chief technology officer at Spreemo, a healthcare company. He also worked at Shopbeam, which focused on online ads. Earlier in his career, he worked at Teledesic. This company planned to provide internet using satellites.
Leading Open Source Software
Dan Kohn became a key leader in the world of open source software. This is software that anyone can use, change, and share freely.
As the executive director of CNCF, he helped many big technology companies join the group. He also helped create rules for Kubernetes. Kubernetes is a very important tool for managing software in the cloud. He also started a program to certify companies that work with Kubernetes.
During his time at CNCF, a big event called KubeCon grew a lot. In 2015, about 500 people attended. By 2019, over 12,000 people came to the event.
Kohn also worked as the chief operating officer at the Linux Foundation. He helped start the Core Infrastructure Initiative. This project helps fund and support important open source software. These projects are vital for the internet to work well. He also helped create a badge for best practices in open source.
Later, as general manager of LF Public Health, Kohn helped public health groups use open source software. This helped them fight diseases like COVID-19.
Personal Life
Dan Kohn was married to Julie Pullen, who is a climate scientist. They had two sons together.
Death
Dan Kohn passed away in New York City on November 1, 2020. He was 47 years old and died from complications of colon cancer.
