Jeff Atwood
Born 1970 · Age 55
American software developer, author, blogger and entrepreneur. Co‑founder of Stack Overflow / Stack Exchange and Discourse; author of the Coding Horror blog.
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Life & Career Timeline
First microcomputer (TI-99/4A) and early programming
As a child in the 1980s Atwood learned programming on early microcomputers, starting with the Texas Instruments TI-99/4A.
Continued early computing on Commodore/Amiga/Apple II
Atwood used devices like the Commodore 64, Amiga and Apple II during his youth and developed an early passion for programming.
Worked part-time as a Safeway cashier during college
During college Atwood worked part-time at Safeway while paying tuition with Pell grants, scholarships and part‑time work.
Graduated University of Virginia
Atwood graduated from the University of Virginia (Alma mater listed as UVA).
Intensive early blogging phase
Atwood wrote prolifically in the blog's first year (reported as many posts per week), an effort he later credited with changing his career trajectory.
Launched Coding Horror blog
Atwood started his programming and human-factors blog 'Coding Horror' (first 'About Me' dated 01 Feb 2004); he later called this the moment that changed his life.
Joined Vertigo Software and moved to California
Atwood found his 'dream job' at Vertigo Software in 2005 and moved to California; his blog helped him get the role.
Met Joel Spolsky (via blogging) leading toward collaboration
As a result of his blogging Atwood met Joel Spolsky; the relationship led to their later joint founding of Stack Overflow.
Published 'Atwood's law' (principle about JavaScript)
In a July 17, 2007 blog post Atwood proposed 'Atwood's law': 'Any application that can be written in JavaScript, will eventually be written in JavaScript.'
Co-founded Stack Overflow
In 2008 Atwood and Joel Spolsky founded Stack Overflow, a programming Q&A site that later became the core of the Stack Exchange network.
Launched Server Fault and Super User (early Stack Exchange sites)
The Stack Overflow project quickly spawned Server Fault (sysadmins) and Super User (general computer questions), forming the start of Stack Exchange.
Keynote at Canadian University Software Engineering Conference (CUSEC)
Atwood was a keynote presenter at the 2008 Canadian University Software Engineering Conference.
Started weekly podcast with Joel Spolsky
Atwood and Spolsky began a weekly podcast covering Stack Exchange progress and software development topics (ran for several years).
Stack Exchange grows into multi-site network
Stack Overflow evolved into the Stack Exchange network of many community-run Q&A sites; the network achieved large-scale traffic (described as among the top 150 sites).
Published 'Effective Programming: More Than Writing Code' (book)
Atwood is author of 'Effective Programming: More Than Writing Code' (publication date commonly cited as 2012).
Left day-to-day role at Stack Exchange
In February 2012 Atwood left his full-time role at Stack Exchange to spend more time with family and consider next projects.
Published 'I Was a Teenage Hacker' blog post
Atwood published a personal blog post recounting his teenage hacking experiences (referenced Aug 8, 2012).
Discourse seed funding from First Round, Greylock, SV Angel
Discourse received early investor backing from First Round, Greylock and SV Angel as part of its initial financing (investor list reported in Feb 2013).
Discourse first stable open-source releases / product milestone
Discourse was developed and made available as an open-source next-generation discussion platform in 2013 (project founded Feb 2013, early releases followed that year).
Announced Civilized Discourse Construction Kit, Inc. (Discourse)
On Feb 5, 2013 Atwood announced his new company (Discourse) and its flagship open-source discussion platform.
Launched CODE mechanical keyboard
Atwood launched a mechanical keyboard called CODE (press reported ~$150 price).
Coding Horror blog hosted on Ghost
Atwood's blog has been hosted on the Ghost blogging platform since 2014.
Weekly podcast with Joel ends
The Atwood/Spolsky Stack Exchange-focused weekly podcast ran from 2008 until 2014.
Interview 'State of Programming' (Software Engineering Daily)
Atwood was interviewed on Software Engineering Daily (episode 'State of Programming with Jeff Atwood').
Stack Overflow / Stack Exchange sold to Prosus
In June 2021 Stack Overflow (the company behind Stack Exchange) was sold to Prosus for $1.8 billion. Atwood was a co‑founder (had left day‑to‑day in 2012).
Sam Saffron and Sarah Hawk named Discourse Co-CEOs
Discourse announced Sam Saffron and Sarah Hawk would serve as Co-CEOs; Atwood began stepping back from day-to-day ops.
Stepped down as Discourse CEO; became Executive Chairman
On Feb 1, 2023 Atwood stepped down as CEO of Discourse and assumed the role of Executive Chairman while remaining on the board and advising.
Published 'The Great Filter Comes For Us All' (blog)
Atwood published a long-form blog post discussing the Fermi paradox and the Great Filter (Dec 2, 2024).
Ongoing roles: Executive Chairman of Discourse and board advisor
After stepping back from daily operations Atwood continues as Executive Chairman of Discourse and remains on the board as an active adviser.
Contributions to local Alameda charities
Atwood and his family contributed to local Alameda organizations including Alameda Post and the Alameda Food Bank.
Public advocacy for Guaranteed Minimum Income (GMI) studies
Atwood partnered with GiveDirectly and OpenResearch to fund and run targeted GMI studies in rural U.S. counties to measure impacts on employment, entrepreneurship and community outcomes.
Donated $1.5M to 404 Media
Atwood donated $1.5 million to 404 Media, a nonprofit news site (announced in the same timeframe as the Jan 2025 philanthropic gifts).
Published 'Stay Gold, America' and announced $1M gifts to 8 nonprofits
On Jan 7, 2025 Atwood published 'Stay Gold, America' and announced eight $1,000,000 gifts (total $8,000,000) to nonprofits including The Trevor Project, Team Rubicon, Planned Parenthood, and others.
Chronicle of Philanthropy profile: pledge to accelerate donations
Jan 16, 2025 coverage in The Chronicle of Philanthropy reported Atwood's pledge to accelerate philanthropic giving, aiming to give away half his wealth in five years.
Delivered Cooper Union Great Hall speech ('The Road Not Taken is Guaranteed Minimum Income')
Atwood delivered a speech at Cooper Union Great Hall (March 20, 2025) about the American Dream and announced a GMI (Guaranteed Minimum Income) initiative.
Family committed $50M to Guaranteed Minimum Income initiative
In March 2025 Atwood's family committed $50 million toward rural GMI studies and associated infrastructure (detailed in his March 20, 2025 post).
Key Achievement Ages
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