Man who died in Texas plane crash was a key figure in seeding Austin's technology boom

Joshua Baer, who died when a small jet crashed in Texas, described himself as an “Austinpreneur,” a reference to the state capital and his specialty of helping people get into business.Baer's LinkedIn page shows him wearing a black T-shirt and pointing at the message: “I help people quit jobs.” His email had a similar handle.Baer, 50, was the founder of Capital Factory, which has grown into an important Austin-based venture capital firm supporting a wide range of technology startup companies, from robots to autonomous ships.He listed his life strategy as, “Plant lots of seeds. Water everyone's. Repeat.” Austin's business leaders said it was the truth. The mayor in 2023 gave Baer a key to the city, a symbol of civic honor.“Whether you're in technology or not, there’s a hole in the heart of Austin today,” Thom Singer, CEO of the Austin Technology Council, which promotes the local tech industry, said of Baer's death.Bryan Chambers, co-founder and president of Capital Factory, said his bus