Philippe Kahn

Philippe Kahn (born 16 March 1952) is a French engineer and entrepreneur who founded four technology companies: Borland, Starfish Software, LightSurf Technologies and Fullpower Technologies. Born and raised in Paris, he studied mathematics at ETH Zurich and the University of Nice, and also earned a master's degree in musicology composition and classical flute performance in Zurich. He co-founded Borland in 1982 and was its chief executive until 1995; its first product, Turbo Pascal, sold for 49.95 dollars when programming tools cost hundreds or thousands. Pushed out of Borland's top job in January 1995, he founded Starfish Software, sold to Motorola in 1998, and with his wife Sonia co-founded LightSurf Technologies, sold to Verisign in 2005. He is credited with creating the first camera phone solution in 1997, when he shared a photo of his daughter's birth over a network, and Fullpower, founded in 2005, builds sleep monitoring and wearable sensor technology. He is also an offshore sailor who holds the Transpac two-person record.