A number of Black Americans deserve our recognition for helping shape the Internet as we know it today. The people listed below, as well as many others, distinguished themselves by changing the rapidly evolving online realm that connects us all.

Mike Holman

Years before we could even imagine the existence of Facebook and Twitter,  Mike Holman created the bulletin board system (BBS) which was one of the first ways for people with common interests to exchange data, send messages and play games.

Marian R. Croak

She used to be a Vice President of Engineering at Google, and she invented Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP.) Thanks to her, we are now able to share live audio and video on the internet. Her invention made business meetings on Zoom and conversations on Skype possible.

Dr. Shirley Jackson

Dr. Jackson is an American physicist and the first African-American woman to receive a Ph.D. in nuclear physics at MIT. Her experiments led to many developments in the field of telecommunication. Some examples of the technologies she worked on include the portable fax, caller ID and the fiber-optic cable, all of which have been at one time or have become essential for connectivity services.

Emmit McHenry

McHenry is a co-founder of Network Solutions Inc., one of the first leading Internet domain name service providers. He also started a telecommunications and engineering company, NetCom Solutions International, that won awards from IBM and NASA.

Lisa Gelobter

Gelobter has contributed to the development of several pioneering internet technologies, such as Shockwave which in many ways helped pioneer animation and online video.

Roy L. Clay

Roy L. Clay is sometimes called the “Godfather of Black Silicon Valley.” He contributed to the launch of Hewlett-Packard’s computer division at the end of the 60s, which helped break down barriers for Black Americans in the field of technology. He created a number of programs to encourage and support people representing minorities to get involved in technology and science. Many Black innovators benefited from his achievements. 

Barry Cooper

Cooper’s side project from 1995 - Black Voices - expanded into one of the largest forums for African Americans at the time. In 2004 the site was sold to AOL and became AOL Black Voices - a platform for cultural and political news.