Many famous people of German descent live in the U.S.A. But Konstantin Guericke, one of the top figures in America’s Internet industry, is still relatively unknown. He is one of the main founders of the world famous network “LinkedIn,” one of America’s 10 most-visited Internet portals, meant to help professionals maintain and cultivate business contacts. Guericke, born 1967 to a pair of teachers, grew up in the northern German town of Zeven. After high school, he applied to study in the U.S.A., and was accepted by Stanford University. There, he chose to study engineering with an emphasis on organizations, technology and innovation. In May 2003, he grounded “LinkedIn” with classmate Reid Hoffman. They then began sending E-mail invites to close acquaintances, who, in turn, spread word of the new network to their friends. By year’s end, the website already boasted over 80,000 members and 14 employees. Today, the number of worldwide members is estimated at over 300 million.
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