ST. HELENA — Dan Lynch, an early internet pioneer who helped develop and popularize the language computers use to communicate, died March 30 at his St. Helena home at age 82.
In the 1970s Lynch helped develop TCP/IP protocols, in conjunction with Bolt, Beranek and Newman, while working at Stanford Research Institute International. Lynch was manager of the computing laboratory for SRI’s Artificial Intelligence Center and later became director of computing facilities.
In the early 1980s, Lynch became director of information processing division for the Information Sciences Institute in Marina del Rey. He led a team that switched ARPANET, the internet predecessor established by the U.S. Department of Defense in 1969, from its original NCP protocols to TCP/IP.
In 1986 Lynch launched what he eventually called Interop, a conference featuring the latest in networking technology such as routers. By the time he sold Interop in 1991, it had gained a global following and helped establish TCP/IP as the standard language computers use to talk to one another.
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Lynch was inducted into the Internet Hall of Fame in 2019. In an induction video, Lynch recalled being introduced to ARPANET his first day on the job at SRI and thinking, “Wow, this is cool.”
After leading the ARPANET changeover effort, Lynch left ISI “because things were happening and I wanted to get involved in a startup of some sort,” he said in the video.
He founded Advanced Computing Environments to teach engineers how the internet worked. It evolved into the TCP/IP Interoperability Conference and Exhibition — Interop for short. Its rise mirrored the exploding popularity and commercialization of the internet, which took root in earnest in the 1990s.
“It grew from 300 people to 50,000 people in four years,” he said.
After selling Interop, Lynch co-founded CyberCash, an early online payment system equipped with what he called “great technology and mediocre marketing.” It went bankrupt in 2001 due to lack of customers and was acquired by PayPal.
He also bought some vineyards on Spring Mountain and eventually moved to St. Helena where, according to his website, he enjoyed “the life of a retired bum.”
“Vegetable gardening is for feeding the body and tenderly tending the cacti is his meditation,” his website stated.
Lynch also served on the boards of local nonprofits like the OLE Health Foundation, the Wolfe Center and NapaLearns.
Lynch, who was married and divorced three times, is survived by six children and seven grandchildren, The New York Times reported.
Elon Musk sued OpenAI for breach of contract over the company benefiting from profits.
States With the Most Active Tech Investors
States With the Most Active Tech Investors
Photo Credit: Drazen Zigic / Shutterstock
A combination of economic factors, evolving since 2020, has fundamentally reshaped numerous industries and redefined individuals’ relationships with work. Among the most notable outcomes of these transformations is the surge in entrepreneurial activity, including business sales.
Historically low interest rates and high government stimulus provided entrepreneurs and investors with easy access to funding. Transitions to remote and hybrid work and the rise of ecommerce made digitally-based businesses more attractive. Amid the Great Resignation, more workers considered career alternatives including entrepreneurship. While inflation and rising interest rates have somewhat cooled activity in the market more recently, signs point to sustained interest in entrepreneurial activity.
Trends in U.S. Entrepreneurial Activity
Since the beginning of COVID-19, interest in buying and selling businesses has exploded
Source: Flippa analysis of Google Trends data (2005–2024) | Image Credit: Flippa
According to data from the U.S. Census Bureau, total new business application volume today is approximately 50% greater than before the pandemic began in early 2020. And entrepreneurs are also considering transactions around existing businesses. Google search data has shown a spike in the search terms “how to sell a business” and “how to buy a business” in recent years. In the Google Trends index, search interest in both terms has risen from the high 30s (out of 100) before COVID to 80+ now, indicating significantly elevated interest.
Total M&A Transaction Volume by State
While California accounts for the most buyer volume, lower-tax states account for a greater proportion of seller volume
Source: Flippa marketplace transactions (2016–2024) | Image Credit: Flippa
In recent years, the rapid pace of digital transformation has generated unparalleled demand for online businesses. While interest in entrepreneurship is up throughout the country, the volume of transactions varies by geography. Notably, residents in California, the epicenter of Silicon Valley, lead the pack of digital asset buyers, followed closely by those in Florida. Each state accounts for approximately 14% of total buyer volume. Other top states for buyers include Texas (8.9%), New York (7.3%), and Illinois (6.1%).
However, the scenario shifts when examining sellers, where California residents do not dominate transaction volumes to the same extent. Instead, residents from states with lower or no tax implications, such as Florida, Texas, and Washington, command a significantly higher share of total seller volume at 15.8%, 14.2%, and 12.8%, respectively.
Per Capita M&A Transaction Volume by State
States in the Mountain West & Florida stand out for high levels of business transactions
Source: Flippa marketplace transactions (2016–2024) | Image Credit: Flippa
On a per capita basis, states in the Mountain West and Florida are home to a higher volume of buyers. Wyoming leads all states in buyer volume per capita at 3.38 times higher than the U.S. average, with other western states like Idaho, Arizona, and Washington also having buyer volume more than twice the national rate.
Leading states for sellers include Delaware, where the seller volume per capita is nearly 11 times higher than the U.S. average, and Wyoming, where the volume is almost 10 times higher. Delaware, Wyoming, and other leading states for sellers tend to be popular places to start a business due to business-friendly regulatory and tax structures. For example, Delaware is known for having clear corporate law, good liability and privacy protections, an efficient corporate court system, and certain tax advantages that make it an attractive place to operate. Meanwhile, Wyoming is regularly rated as having one of the best tax climates for businesses due to its lack of corporate and individual income taxes and relatively low sales tax rates.
Below is a comparison of per capita business transaction volumes for buyers and sellers in all 50 states. The analysis was conducted by Flippa using over 100,000 business transactions on its marketplace spanning the past eight years. For more information, see the methodology section below.
States With the Most Active Buyers
States With the Most Active Sellers
Methodology
Photo Credit: Drazen Zigic / Shutterstock
The data used in this study is from a proprietary set of more than 125,000 digital asset sales that occurred on the Flippa.com marketplace between 2016 and 2024. To determine the states with the most active tech investors, researchers at Flippa calculated how each state’s total transaction sales volume per capita compared to the U.S. average for both buyers and sellers. The total transaction sales volume was calculated as the sum of the sale prices for all transactions. States were ordered by the per capita buyer transaction volume.
For complete results, see States With the Most Active Tech Investors on Flippa.
You can reach Jesse Duarte at (707) 967-6803 or [email protected].
Tyler Fields is your internet guru, delving into the latest trends, developments, and issues shaping the online world. With a focus on internet culture, cybersecurity, and emerging technologies, Tyler keeps readers informed about the dynamic landscape of the internet and its impact on our digital lives.
