People use the internet every day to chat with friends, watch videos, do homework, and even shop. But there was a time when none of this existed. That all changed thanks to one person: Tim Berners-Lee.

In 1989, while working at a science lab in Europe called CERN, Tim had an idea that would change the world. He wanted to make it easier for people to share and find information using computers. His idea became the World Wide Web, which is what we use today to browse websites, read articles, and stream videos.

Tim grew up in London in the 1950s. His parents were both into math and early computers, so he was surrounded by technology from a young age. He later attended Oxford University to study physics, and it was there that he truly began learning how to program.

Back then, the internet already existed, but it was only used by a few scientists. Tim came up with a way to make it useful for everyone. He invented essential tools such as HTML (used to build web pages), HTTP (which enables computers to communicate with each other), and the first web browser. He also made the first-ever website!

What’s really amazing is that Tim chose to give his invention to the world for free. He didn’t try to make money from it because he just wanted people everywhere to use it. That decision helped the Web grow super fast.

Even today, Tim Berners-Lee continues to work to keep the internet open and safe. He believes everyone should have equal access and control over their data, not just big companies. Thanks to his work, we have the internet as we know it, which is used by everyone in their day-to-day lives.