British tech entrepreneur Mike Lynch has been confirmed dead by search and rescue teams following the sinking of his yacht near Sicily amid a violent storm, officials report.
Mike Lynch, aged 59 and founder of Autonomy Corporation, was reported missing along with five others after their British-flagged 56-meter sailboat, Bayesian, overturned around 5am on August 19 near Palermo amid a tornado.
The body of Lynch was located within the wreckage on August 22, confirmed Massimo Mariani, an official from the Interior Ministry, following briefings with emergency personnel.
Agence France-Presse also confirmed the recovery of his body, citing a coastguard official.
His spouse, Angela Bacares, was rescued on Monday, though their 18-year-old daughter, Hannah, remains missing. Mariani suggested that she might be trapped inside the wreck or could have been swept out to sea as the vessel went down.
An Italian fire brigade spokesperson indicated that locating the final missing individual could take several days due to the challenges divers face at a wreck situated 50 meters (165 feet) underwater.
On August 21, four other victims were retrieved from the debris. The yacht’s chef, Recaldo Thomas, was discovered shortly after the sinking on Monday.
Described as Britain’s equivalent of Bill Gates, Lynch spent the last decade defending his reputation against fraud accusations related to Autonomy’s sale to Hewlett-Packard for $11 billion (£7 billion).
He was cleared of these charges by a San Francisco jury in June after spending over a year effectively under house arrest. The yacht trip was a celebration of his acquittal.
Lord Browne, the chair of the Francis Crick Institute, was among the first to pay tribute to Lynch, writing on X: “Mike Lynch should be remembered as the person who catalyzed a breed of deep-tech entrepreneurs in the UK.”
“His ideas and his personal vision were a powerful contribution to science and technology both in Britain and globally. I send my condolences to those close to him. We have lost a human being of great ability.”
Lynch also served on the Create the Change fundraising board for Cancer Research UK, which contributed to the construction of the institute. Furthermore, he was a director at the BBC for five years.
David Tabizel, co-founder of Autonomy with Lynch, expressed his grief on X: “It appears we have lost our dear Dr. Mike Lynch. RIP. The world has lost a genius, his family, a monumental figure.” He described Lynch as a “human supercomputer” in an interview.
The Royal Academy of Engineering, where Lynch was a fellow, expressed deep sorrow over his passing: “Mike became a fellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering in 2008, and we cherish the active role he played as a mentor, donor, and former council member.”
“He was also a founding member of our enterprise committee. Our thoughts are with his family and friends during this difficult time.”
A senior official disclosed to the media that a fifth body had been extracted from the wreckage on August 23. Salvatore Cocina, head of Sicily’s civil protection agency, confirmed the body was successfully retrieved and brought to Porticello’s pier.
According to Italian media, citing diving team sources, the victims found on August 22 included Chris Morvillo and his wife, Neda, as well as Jonathan Bloomer, executive chair of Morgan Stanley International, and his wife, Judy.
The Bloomer family praised them as “incredible people and an inspiration to many.”
Doubts about the yacht’s rapid sinking persist. The CEO of the boat’s manufacturing company countered claims that the mast’s length posed a risk.
Giovanni Costantino, head of the Italian Sea Group, which includes Perini Navi, maintained the yacht’s safety, attributing the disaster to human errors, such as leaving hatches open and not fully lowering the keel, in an interview with Corriere della Sera.
The bodies recovered on August 22 were transported to hospitals in nearby Palermo, though official identifications have not yet been made.
The yacht had 22 people on board at the time of the sinking; fifteen survived, including a one-year-old girl.
