[neonscribe]

Ted Nelson, not Eric Drexler. And not "inspired by" but founded by him. (K. Eric Drexler is nanotechnology, not hypertext.) Not really an Internet startup, certainly one of the longest but not the biggest tech business failures.

[Eliezer]

Ted Nelson was the founder, yes. He was inspired by Drexler, who like certain later transhumanists did human rationality on the side. Do none still remember "Engines of Creation"? It had a whole chapter on hypertext.

[Turing_Machine]

Nelson started what became the Xanadu project in 1960, when Drexler was only five years old.

[Eliezer]

Correction noted. I'm pretty sure though that at least some of the people on the Xanadu team were Drexler-sent.