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| Yahn Bernier | |
|---|---|
| Born | Yahn William Bernier (1968-02-13) February 13, 1968 (age 56) |
| Education | Harvard University (BS) University of Florida (JD) |
| Alma mater | Satellite High School |
| Occupation(s) | Patent lawyer, Programmer |
| Years active | 1994-present |
| Employer | Valve Software |
| Spouse |
Beth McCaw (m. 1998) |
| Children | 1 |
Yahn William Bernier (born February 13, 1968) is an American software developer, philanthropist and a former patent lawyer. He is best known for his programming work in Valve Software titles, particularly in Half-Life where he was known for writing the most code in the game there. As of 2024, he currently owns a racing team The Heart of Racing along with British racing driver Ian James and Gabe Newell, and owns the Lunasea superyacht. His net worth is in $550 million.
Life
Of French-American ancestry, Bernier learned to program at the age of 12 through his high school teacher that let him use punch cards that converted to FORTRAN code, and fixed TRS-80s in RadioShack stores. He later graduated Florida's Satellite High School in 1986 and enrolled in Harvard for a Bachelors of Science in Chemistry. He graduated in 1992, and later enrolled in University of Florida to study law and became a patent lawyer in Atlanta. In late-90s, Yahn made a mapping tool called BSP Map Editor which later got him hired by Valve to program for their GoldSrc engine for the upcoming Half-Life game, and continues to work on all major Valve titles to this day.
He appeared in the first Half-Life's making of documentary which was released in November 19, 2023, and Half-Life 2's making of documentary in November 16, 2024.
Ownership of Lunasea
Main article: Lunasea (yacht)Since 2020, Bernier has owned the Lunasea superyacht, which was previously owned by Australian entrepreneur John Symond. It is valued at $110 million as of 2020.
At early morning of July 27, 2021, the yacht was attempted to be burglarized by a man while the 20 crew members inside the yacht were sleeping. The captain had heard someone walking in his office. Thinking it was a crew member, he went into the office to find a male inside searching the office. The captain and the crew detained the suspect and did not resist. The suspect later got arrested.
Political views
Bernier is a registered Democrat. In August 2023, he held a private fundraiser along with Microsoft's vice chairman Brad Smith with Kamala Harris attending the fundraiser at his home in Medina, Washington.
See also
References
- "YAHN BERNIER: Valve Corporation and Philanthropist Yacht Owner • Net Worth". SuperYachtFan.
- "What's next in gaming with Yahn Bernier". YouTube. 26 October 2023.
- "What's next in gaming with Yahn Bernier". YouTube. 26 October 2023.
- "valve". Valve Software. Archived from the original on 2000-05-20.
- Aguillard, Doug (2024-07-28). "Yahn Bernier's Super Yacht Burglarized San Diego - ONSCENE.TV". Onscene.tv.
- "What's next in gaming with Yahn Bernier". YouTube. 26 October 2023.
- "SHS-1986 Graduating Class - Newspapers.comâ„¢". Newspapers.com. June 1986. p. 7.
- Gorgan, Elena (2020-12-11). "Here's How a $112 Million Floating Home Looks Like: On Board Lunasea Superyacht - autoevolution". autoevolution.
- Aguillard, Doug (2024-07-28). "Yahn Bernier's Super Yacht Burglarized San Diego - ONSCENE.TV". Onscene.tv.
- Brunner, Jim; Gutman, David (2023-08-15). "Kamala Harris, in Seattle, says climate crisis impact is 'stark,' 'vivid' - The Seattle Times". The Seattle Times. Retrieved 2024-11-04.