Today in Tech History (September 3rd, 1995): eBay is Founded!
On this day, September 3rd, 1995, eBay was founded by Pierre Omidyar. Originally named "AuctionWeb", the first item sold was a broken laser pointer. It was posted for sale by the creator, and as it was not originally intended to sell, the item sold for $14.83! When it was sold, Omidyar wrote to the buyer and made sure it was clear that the laser pointer did not work, to which the buyer famously replied, "I'm a collector of broken laser pointers!" Today, Omidyar is worth billions of dollars.
