Charles Geschke, Adobe Co-Founder And PDF Pioneer, Dies At 81

LOS ALTOS, CA — Charles Geschke, the co-founder of Adobe and one of the inventors of the PDF, died Friday at the age of 81.

Geschke, who lived in the Silicon Valley suburb of Los Altos, was surrounded by family at his passing, the company said in a news release.

Geschke co-founded San Jose-based Adobe in 1982 and remained involved in what would become one of the world’s largest and most recognizable software companies until April 2020, when he transitioned to emeritus board member. In 1984, along with co-founder John Warnock, Geschke introduced Adobe PostScript, which allows users to print texts and images on paper, as the company’s founding technology.

Other software inventions in later years included Acrobat, Illustrator, Premiere Pro and Photoshop. In an email to employees Friday, Adobe CEO Shantanu Narayen wrote that in addition to his innovations, it was Geschke’s “focus on people, purpose and culture that has profoundly impacted each of us at Adobe.”

“As he always said, Chuck wanted to create a company where he would want to work,” Narayen said. “He believed that good ideas come from everywhere in the company and that it’s not only what we do but how we do it that matters most. He dedicated much of his time and talent to various philanthropies and community organizations throughout his lifetime.”

According to the Wall Street Journal, Geschke discovered computer programming “more or less by accident in the 1960s” after studying Latin and liberal arts in college and considering becoming a priest. He began his career at Xerox Palo Alto Research Center after earning a Ph.D. in computer science from Carnegie Mellon University. At Xerox, Geschke met Warnock, where they formulated the concept behind what would become Adobe PostScript.

But Xerox was “slow to recognize the potential of their ideas” the Journal reported.

In a statement to Narayen, Warnock said: “In 1982, Chuck and I agreed that we should leave Xerox and start our own company. That was the beginning of Adobe. I could never have imagined having a better, more likable, or more capable business partner. Not having Chuck in our lives will leave a huge hole and those who knew him will all agree.”

In 2009, Geschke and Warnock were recognized by President Barack Obama for their work with the National Medal of Technology.

Geschke is survived by his wife, Nancy Geschke, and three children.