Brendan Eich
Born 1961 · Age 64
American computer programmer and technology executive; created the JavaScript programming language; co‑founder of the Mozilla project, Mozilla Foundation, Mozilla Corporation, and Brave Software; former Mozilla CTO and briefly CEO; CEO and cofounder of Brave.
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Life & Career Timeline
Born in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Brendan Eich born in Pittsburgh; later grew up also in Gaithersburg, Maryland and Palo Alto, California.
Graduated Ellwood P. Cubberley High School (class of 1979)
Attended and graduated from Ellwood P. Cubberley High School in Palo Alto, class of 1979.
Earned bachelor’s degree in mathematics & computer science (Santa Clara Univ.)
Completed undergraduate studies in mathematics and computer science at Santa Clara University (year estimated from schooling timeline).
Earned M.S. from University of Illinois Urbana–Champaign
Received a master's degree (computer science) from UIUC in 1985.
Started career at Silicon Graphics (SGI)
Began working at SGI on operating system and network code; worked there for seven years.
Left Silicon Graphics
Completed ~7-year tenure at Silicon Graphics; moved on to MicroUnity Systems Engineering.
Worked at MicroUnity Systems Engineering
Wrote microkernel and DSP code at MicroUnity for approximately three years.
Designed and implemented SpiderMonkey JavaScript engine
Created the first SpiderMonkey engine (C implementation) to run the new language in Netscape Navigator.
Created 'Mocha' (initial name) — early JavaScript prototype
Designed a small language prototype (initially called Mocha) for embedding scripting in the browser.
Joined Netscape Communications Corporation
Started at Netscape (April 1995); initially tasked to put Scheme in the browser, then to create a new scripting language.
Completed first version of the language in 10 days
Implemented the first version of the language in about ten days to meet Navigator 2.0 Beta schedule; combined Scheme ideas, Self object model, and Java-like syntax.
Language renamed to LiveScript
The language's name changed from Mocha to LiveScript (September 1995).
Language officially named JavaScript (joint announcement with Sun)
In December 1995, Netscape and Sun announced the language name 'JavaScript'.
Co-founded the Mozilla project (mozilla.org)
Co-founded Mozilla with Jamie Zawinski and others to manage open-source contributions to Netscape source code; served as Mozilla's chief architect.
AOL acquired Netscape
AOL bought Netscape (1999); Netscape codebase and assets moved under AOL ownership.
Netscape browser unit shut down
AOL shut down the Netscape browser unit (July 2003); Eich helped with spinning out the Mozilla Foundation effort.
Mozilla Foundation forms; Mozilla Corporation created; Eich named CTO
Press release (Aug 3, 2005) announcing Mozilla Foundation constructs and the Mozilla Corporation; Brendan Eich became the Mozilla Corporation's Chief Technical Officer.
Political donation to California Proposition 8 ($1,000)
Donated $1,000 in 2008 to California Proposition 8, the ballot measure to ban same-sex marriage; later became a focal point of controversy.
Donations to Tom McClintock (~$2,100 total)
Between 2008 and 2010 Eich donated approximately $2,100 to Tom McClintock, a Proposition 8 supporter; these donations were cited during later controversies.
Featured in 'Coders at Work' (publication/interview)
Interview/profile included in Peter Seibel's 'Coders at Work' (2009).
Transferred SpiderMonkey module ownership to Dave Mandelin
Eich publicly announced passing ownership of the SpiderMonkey JavaScript engine module to Dave Mandelin (June 21, 2011).
Mozilla board resignations triggered by CEO appointment
Reports that several Mozilla board members (Gary Kovacs, John Lilly, Ellen Siminoff) resigned around late March 2014 in response to Eich's appointment as CEO.
Public backlash: OkCupid message & CREDO petition collected >50,000 signatures
Activists launched campaigns including OkCupid prompting Firefox users and CREDO Mobile collecting more than 50,000 signatures calling for resignation.
Appointed CEO of Mozilla Corporation
Mozilla announced Brendan Eich as CEO of Mozilla Corporation (March 24, 2014), moving him from CTO to CEO.
Public statement expressing sorrow and pledge to work with LGBT communities
Eich issued a public apology/statement (Mar 26, 2014) expressing sorrow for causing pain over his past donations and pledging to work with LGBT communities and allies.
Public blog post 'Inclusiveness at Mozilla'
Posted on personal blog (Mar 26, 2014) addressing inclusiveness and the controversy; voiced sorrow and intent to engage with communities.
Resigned as CEO and left Mozilla (after 11 days)
After 11 days as CEO, Brendan Eich resigned (April 3, 2014), stating he could not be an effective leader under the circumstances; Mozilla announced board tried to offer alternative roles but he severed ties.
Brave raised ~$2.5M in early angel funding
Brave secured approximately $2.5 million in early funding from angel investors including Founders Fund, Foundation Capital, and Digital Currency Group.
Co‑founded Brave Software (with Brian Bondy)
Brendan Eich and Brian Bondy founded Brave Software (May 28, 2015), a privacy-focused web browser company.
Released developer versions of Brave browser
Brave released developer (early) versions of its open-source, Chromium-based browser in January 2016; browser blocks ads and trackers.
Launched Basic Attention Token (BAT) ICO — raised $35M
BAT (cryptocurrency tied to Brave advertising model) launched its ICO on May 31, 2017 and raised approximately $35 million (sold quickly).
JavaScript widespread developer base (milestone cited)
By 2018, JavaScript was reported as having over 10 million developers worldwide (language Brendan Eich created).
Brave launches out of beta
Brave browser moved out of beta and positioned as a mainstream ad-blocking, privacy-focused browser (Nov 2019 reports).
NYT reports backlash over Eich's COVID-related tweets
The New York Times reported (Dec 22, 2020) that Eich's tweets about COVID-19 policy/science caused backlash among users, echoing earlier controversies.
Featured on Lex Fridman Podcast (#160)
Appeared on Lex Fridman Podcast (Feb 12, 2021) discussing JavaScript, Firefox, Mozilla, and Brave.
Continued public profile and commentary
Public profile continues; cited in later articles and interviews reflecting on JavaScript and Brave (examples include Wired, and other technology coverage).
Key Achievement Ages
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