Who was founder and chairman of America Online Corporation?

Steve Case was the founder and chairman of America Online, better known as AOL. He joined the company’s predecessor, Quantum Computer Services, in 1985 and helped turn it into one of the defining internet companies of the 1990s.

Case’s background was in marketing rather than engineering. At Quantum, he promoted the idea that online services should be simple and welcoming to ordinary consumers. The company’s service, originally called Quantum Link, expanded beyond its early Commodore 64 audience and was renamed America Online in 1991.

Case became CEO in 1991 and served as AOL’s chairman during its extraordinary growth. AOL popularized dial-up internet access, email, chat rooms and subscription-based online communities, eventually reaching tens of millions of members. In 2000, Case helped negotiate AOL’s merger with Time Warner, one of the largest corporate deals in history.

The wording can cause confusion because Jim Kimsey and Marc Seriff were also important AOL co-founders. Nevertheless, Steve Case is the standard quiz answer for the company’s founder and chairman.