Shocking news from San Francisco as Cash App founder Bob Lee died after a brutal stabbing incident. The slain tech executive was 43 years old. The incident has sent tremors across the tech community where Bob Lee was a well-respected figure. Tributes and condolences have poured in on social media for the former CTO of Square.
The police were alerted to the stabbing and arrived at the scene to find that Bob Lee had been stabbed multiple times. Officers immediately provided first aid and called for medical assistance. The victim was then rushed to a nearby hospital, but despite the best efforts of the medical personnel, he passed away from his injuries.
The police department has launched an investigation into the incident and is appealing to the public for any information that may help in identifying the perpetrator.
Tech executives react to Cash App founder’s stabbing
Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Block (formerly Square where Bob Lee worked) expressed his condolences in a post on Nostr. He called Bob Lee instrumental to Square. Similarly, Dylan Field, the CEO of Figma, expressed his disbelief on Twitter, recalling his first encounter with Lee in 2006 and describing his death as heartbreaking.
Bill Barhydt, the CEO of Abra, a cryptocurrency company, expressed his grief on Twitter after learning about the death of Mr. Lee, who he described as a kind and generous person and a father.
I just got devastating news that our friend Bob Lee (@crazybob ) was killed in SF early today.
Bob was a dad, the former CTO of Square where he created Cash App & CTO of Mobile Coin. He was a generous decent human being who didn’t deserve to be killed.https://t.co/RnzA1Idpun
— Bill Barhydt (@billbarX) April 5, 2023
Meanwhile, Elon Musk, the founder of Tesla and CEO of Twitter, responded to the tributes on Twitter by saying that violent crime in San Francisco is alarming, and attackers are often released immediately even if they are caught.
Bob Lee’s life, career and Cash App
Bob Lee was known for his exceptional skills in developing scalable and reliable systems, and began his career in the early 2000s after studying computer science at the University of Illinois. He went on to work at several prominent tech companies including Yahoo, Square, Google, Facebook, and Figma.
At the time of his death, Lee was serving as the chief product officer of the cryptocurrency company MobileCoin. Lee was also the creator of Cash App, a smartphone-based payment app that allows person-to-person money transfers.
According to Forbes, the app is now worth $40bn (£32bn) and has seen a massive increase in its user base since its launch in 2013. It hit seven million monthly active users in 2017 and climbed to 30 million in 2020.
Social media tributes and condolences
In a statement, Mayor London Breed expressed her deep sorrow over the death of Bob Lee, describing it as a terrible tragedy. She also reassured the city’s residents that public safety is a top priority for the city.
Cash App creator Bob Lee was stabbed to death in the middle of San Francisco… why would anyone continue to live there???
— Tim Young (@TimRunsHisMouth) April 6, 2023
My heart goes out to Mr. Lee’s family members, friends and loved ones. This is a senseless tragedy that I know is made worse by the fact that no suspect is yet in custody. (1/4)https://t.co/7HenfdXNL1
— Matt Dorsey 🥥🌴 (@mattdorsey) April 5, 2023
Bob Lee is also a loyal friend
I tweeted Jack Dorsey belongs in prison and Bob called me and said I should delete the tweet because it wasn’t jacks fault
The Twitter files showed Bob was right Jack wasn’t involved in election meddling
— Jake Shields (@jakeshieldsajj) April 5, 2023
RIP Bob Lee we ran it up on cash app
— Jay Critch (@jaycritch) April 5, 2023
Bob Lee was a legend in software and according to the people who knew him an unbelievably sweet guy. Him passing like this is surreal and high key infuriating.
— Daniel (@growing_daniel) April 5, 2023
RIP to one of the realist most brilliant humans I’ve ever met @crazybob 😔💔
Rip Bob Lee
CTO Square
CTO Mobile Coin
Creator of Cash AppAnd a rad single Dad 🙏
— Joshua Donaldson (@JoshCDonaldson) April 5, 2023
And it’s not just tech executives. Bob Lee’s shocking death has raked in tributes and condolences from all over social media. His contributions to the tech industry, especially Cash App, will continue to influence and inspire others for years to come.