It took humanity 800 years to build Rome but only 33 years to build the World Wide Web. How is it possible that in the course of one generation we were able to build a technology so impactful it completely redefined how we interact with the world around us? Brian Autumn, Software Concept Accelerator and founder of the largest software community in Massachusetts, takes you on a dramatic journey from the web’s humble beginnings at CERN in 1989 to the technologies that power our highly interactive web applications of today. Along the way, he reveals the unexpected people, with varying incentives, backgrounds, and visions, who together created the greatest technological advancement in history. Spending over a year interviewing technologists, Brian compiled a wide range of first-hand, personal accounts - from engineers who helped designed web 1.0 to newly graduated students building the web of the future - to illuminate what it was (and is) like to live through the evolution of these foundational technologies that define our highly dynamic modern world.

This talk is designed to run for 1 hour and requires a projector or screen and an HDMI cable. The talk can be shorted to fit other time blocks.

It is designed to be engaging for audiences of any level of technical background including those with no formal background in technology. It is particularly tailored to audiences that are interested in knowing more about the evolution of technologies. I adapt the talk per session, changing some of the focus and information, to best cater to what they would most likely find engaging.

I have previously given this talk at the following events:
New York Code and Coffee (4/7/24): https://www.meetup.com/new-york-code-coffee/events/300169218/
Boston Code and Coffee (4/6/24): https://www.meetup.com/boston-code-and-coffee/events/300083357/
NERD Summit (3/8/24): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=LGM8Fk7r4LI