I’ve known Om Malik for 26 years.
We built companies during the first internet boom. We discovered photography together. We wandered Greenland, Svalbard, Wyoming, Idaho, and plenty of places in between. During COVID, he was part of my tiny bubble. We spent far more time talking about life, art, and philosophy than we ever did talking about technology.
The world knew Om as one of the greatest technology writers of his generation. He had a rare gift for seeing past the headlines and finding what actually mattered. He didn’t just explain what was happening. He explained why it mattered and where it might lead. Ironically, some of his finest writing came from his hospital room during the last two months as he waited for a new heart.
In the end, a heart never came.
There is something painfully unfair about that. Om was one of the biggest hearted people I’ve ever known.
His loss leaves a hole that stretches far beyond technology. It reaches into the lives of friends scattered across the world who laughed with him, traveled with him, argued with him, and came away seeing things a little differently.
I’ll miss his curiosity. His generosity. His perspective.
Most of all, I’ll miss my friend.
This is a small collection of what 26 years of friendship looked like.
https://www.christophermichel.com/People/Om-the-Great/n-WkMDW
