Stephen Wilhite, the inventor of the GIF, died last week from Covid-19 at the age of 74.
According to his wife Kathaleen, the computer scientist died on March 14, surrounded by family.
The inventor of the GIF, or Graphics Interchange Format, Wilhite developed the iconic software in 1987 while employed at CompuServe.
While the GIF is today synonymous with internet memes and digital jokes, Wilhite originally developed the format to distribute high-quality, high-resolution graphics.
Speaking to the New York Times, in 2013 Wilhite, took the opportunity to settle the long-standing confusion surrounding pronunciation.
“The Oxford English Dictionary accepts both pronunciations. They are wrong. It is a soft ‘G,’ pronounced ‘jif.’ End of story.”
In the same interview, he told reporters his favourite GIF was the dancing baby meme.
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