# Steve Kirsch

> Steve Kirsch is an American engineer and retired technology entrepreneur, a co-founder and founding CEO of Token.io. His ventures include Mouse Systems, Frame Technology, Infoseek, Propel, Abaca, OneID and M10, spanning computer input, publishing, search, identity and payments. He earned SB and SM degrees at MIT in 1980.

- **Role:** Retired technology entrepreneur; co-founder and former founding CEO of Token.io
- **Organizations:** Mouse Systems, Frame Technology, Infoseek, Propel, Abaca, OneID, Token.io, M10, Steven and Michele Kirsch Foundation
- **From:** Los Angeles, United States
- **Nationality:** American
- **Education:** SB and SM in Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- **Known for:** Independently developed an early optical mouse., Co-founded Frame Technology, developer of FrameMaker., Founded Infoseek.

## Career timeline

- **1972** — Worked with the UCLA ARPANET group while attending high school, according to his personal biography.
- **1980** — Earned SB and SM degrees at MIT and independently developed an early optical mouse.
- **1982** — Started Mouse Systems with $40,000 of personal savings.
- **1986** — Co-founded Frame Technology with Charles Corfield.
- **1993** — Began Infoseek; its service launched in 1994.
- **1995** — Adobe acquired Frame Technology.
- **1998** — Pledged $2.5 million toward an MIT auditorium.
- **1999** — Disney acquired the remaining Infoseek shares; Kirsch began Propel.
- **2005** — Founded spam-filtering company Abaca.
- **2011** — Founded OneID.
- **2015** — Co-founded Token and presented it with Yobie Benjamin at FinovateSpring.
- **2019-08** — Succeeded as Token.io CEO by Todd Clyde; became chief innovation officer.
- **2019-12** — Became CEO of M10 as the digital-money operation spun out of Token.io.

## Achievements

- Independently developed an early optical mouse.
- Co-founded Frame Technology, developer of FrameMaker.
- Founded Infoseek.
- Co-founded Token.io and served as its founding CEO.
- Pledged $2.5 million for an MIT auditorium in 1998.

## Latest updates

- **2020-10** — Appeared on In Check with Fintech to discuss M10 and his entrepreneurial career.
- **2019-12** — Named CEO of M10 as the digital-money business spun out of Token.io.

## Links

- Website: https://www.skirsch.com/
- LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/in/stevekirsch
- Twitter/X: https://x.com/stkirsch
- GitHub: https://github.com/skirsch

---

Profile page: https://yespress.io/steve-kirsch
Published by YesPress — https://yespress.io
Last updated: 2026-10-22