Tim May, the man who spearheaded 'crypto anarchy', has passed away

Tim May, one of the earliest proponents of non-governmental digital assets, passed away last week at home at the age of 67.

May was seen as a leader among techno-libertarians, anticipating how advances in computers would one-day allow "individuals and groups to communicate and interact with each other" anonymously and independently of government, with digital currencies holding an instrumental role. He co-founded the Cypherpunks mailing list in 1981, which counted Wikileaks' Julien Assange among its readers. Assange later released a book endorsing May's political philosophy of 'crpyto anarchy', broadly meaning "Keep your hands off my stuff....Out of my files, out of my office, off what I eat, drink, and smoke."

The Reason blog provided a full biography of May, whose public influence waned after Cypherphunks dissolution in 2001 following the terror attacks, before resurging in 2008 amid the launch of Bitcoin.