Robert X. Cringely: key obituary facts
Is Robert X. Cringely dead? Yes. Robert X. Cringely died on October 3, 2026, at age 73.
Cause of death: Robert X. Cringely's cause of death has not been publicly confirmed.
What was Robert X. Cringely known for?
He was an American technology journalist and columnist.
More about Robert X. Cringely
Born: 28 January 1953.
Place of birth: Apple Creek.
Gender: male.
Occupation: journalist, screenwriter.
Nationality: United States.
Education: College of Wooster.
Employer: Apple Inc.
Also known as: Mark Channing Stephens, Mark C. Stephens, Mark Stephens.
Occupations: Journalist, Technology writer.
Known for: InfoWorld columnAccidental Empires: How the Boys of Silicon Valley Make Their Millions, Battle Foreign Competition and Still Can't Get a Date.
Robert X.
Cringely, the pen name of technology journalist Mark Stephens, died October 3, 2026, aged 73. Born in Apple Creek, Ohio, Stephens earned a bachelor’s degree from the College of Wooster in 1975 and a master’s degree in communication from Stanford University in 1979, where he also pursued doctoral work.
He contributed an influential, frequently republished column to InfoWorld, the computer trade newspaper published by IDG, and wrote for publications including Forbes, Newsweek, The New York Times, Upside and Worth. His book, “Accidental Empires: How the Boys of Silicon Valley Make Their Millions, Battle Foreign Competition and Still Can’t Get a Date,” examined Silicon Valley’s technology industry. Stephens also appeared as Cringely in the documentaries “Triumph of the Nerds: The Rise of Accidental Empires” (1996) and “Nerds 2.0.1: A Brief History of the Internet” (1998), which explored the history of personal computing and the internet. He later published independently on his website, I, Cringely. Earlier, he served on the Public’s Right to Information Task Force, part of the President’s Commission on the Accident at Three Mile Island.