Tech government Bob Lee, founding father of Money App, useless after obvious stabbing assault in San Francisco

Tech entrepreneur and CashApp founder Bob Lee. (From Twitter via CNN)

By Catherine Thorbecke | CNN

Bob Lee, Square’s former chief technology officer who helped launch the Cash App, has died in San Francisco after an apparent knife attack.

Lee’s death was confirmed by Josh Goldbard, the CEO of his current employer, MobileCoin. Lee joined MobileCoin, a cryptocurrency and digital payments startup, in 2021 as Chief Product Officer.

“Our dear friend and colleague Bob Lee passed away yesterday at the age of 43, leaving behind a loving family and a band of close friends and associates,” Goldbard said in a statement to CNN on Wednesday morning. “Bob was a dynamo, a force of nature. Bob was the real article. He was created for the world that is being born, he was a child of dreams and whatever he imagined, no matter how crazy, he accomplished.”

Goldbard continued, “We will miss you, Bob. We love you.”

Rick Lee, Bob’s father, also confirmed the news in a statement on Facebook, writing, “I just lost my best friend.” The father said his son “lost his life on the street in San Francisco early Tuesday.”

“Bob would give you the shirt off his back,” the father wrote. “He never looked down on anyone and had a strong philosophy of non-judgment.”

Rick Lee added that his son “will be missed by everyone who knew him” and thanked those who reached out and offered support.

San Francisco Mayor London Breed also issued a statement Wednesday, calling Lee’s death “a terrible tragedy.” Breed said police are still investigating Lee’s death and will provide more details soon.

According to an earlier statement from the San Francisco Police Department, officials were responding to reports of a stabbing early Tuesday morning in the Rincon neighborhood of San Francisco, where they found “a 43-year-old adult male victim who appeared to be suffering from stab wounds.” ”

“Officials provided assistance and called paramedics to the scene of the accident. The victim was transported to a local hospital with life-threatening injuries. Despite the efforts of first responders and medical personnel, the victim succumbed to his injuries,” the police statement said.

Several local news organizations quoted unnamed police sources as saying Lee was the victim of the stabbing. Police said no arrests had been made and investigations were ongoing.

San Francisco has grappled with an apparent spike in crime while still trying to recover from the pandemic. Preliminary police data reports 12 homicides in San Francisco this year, up 20% from the same period last year. Overall, there were 56 homicides in San Francisco in 2022, which is exactly the same number of homicides the city recorded in 2021.

While Goldbard did not specify the circumstances of Lee’s death in his statement, he wrote in a separate Twitter thread in response to the news, “As a lifelong Bay Area resident, I have more questions than answers tonight.”

“I don’t know how to fix this, but I know something isn’t working in our gray city. Bob left this world too soon,” Goldbard wrote on Twitter.

outbreak of grief

Many others in the tech world and beyond reacted to the news of Lee’s death with outbursts of shock and sadness.

“It’s so hard to believe he’s gone,” Figma CEO Dylan Field wrote in a tweet, recalling first meeting Lee in 2006.

Launchpad Capital tech investor Ryan Gilbert tweeted that Lee was “one of a kind,” adding, “May his memory be a blessing.”

And mixed martial artist Jake Shields remembered Lee as a “loyal friend” in a tweet, writing, “RIP bro.”

Shields’ tweet caught the attention of new Twitter owner Elon Musk, who included himself by saying, “Violent crimes in SF are horrendous and even when attackers are caught, they are often released immediately.” Musk tagged the District Attorney of in his tweet San Francisco, Brooke Jenkins.

Jack Dorsey, the CEO of Square (now called Block), responded to the news with a post on decentralized social media app Nostr early Wednesday. “Heartbreaking,” Dorsey wrote. “Bob was instrumental in both Square and Cash App.”

Lee was Square’s first chief technology officer. Before joining Square, Lee was at Google, where he led the team that brought Android to market.

The CNN Wire
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