Vint Cerf is called the Father of the Internet among other prestigious titles. It was Cerf and fellow inventor, Bob Kahn, who developed TCP/IP, which is the essential communication capabilities that makes the Internet possible.
Cerf is also the founder of People-Centered Internet and is directing that group toward a fundamental goal shared by other large online platforms – to connect the rest of the world to the Internet.The main mission of PCI entails assisting the funding of infrastructure projects through high-profile agencies.
This goal was the reason he attended the South by Southwest (SXSW) in Austin, Texas, to advocate the IEEE’s “Tech for Humanity Series.”Cerf said he is looking for the kind of creative talent that congregate at the Austin event to help in PCI’s goal. He said they need “outside-the-box” thinkers to develop innovative ways to make the Internet more accessible and affordable.
Cerf said PCI’s goals will take time to achieve. However, a number of private sector organizations like Facebook and Google are already engaging initiatives to connect “the next one billion people” to the internet.
Another challenge in connecting geographic regions with relatively low technical infrastructure. Many of these areas also lack the needed people skills, so a large degree of re-education and life-long educational processes will have to be embedded as the overall mission progresses.
Cerf’s credentials also include his status as an IEEE Life Fellow at Google; he won the national Medal of Technology, The Turning Award, and The Presidential Medal of Freedom.
