I think many of you know that I have been "around the block" in terms of Internet history. I go way back: 1990. I have been fortunate to see all the development. It is hard to believe that most people did not know what the Internet was in 1995!

The other benefit from having been "around" is that I have gotten to meet some amazing people way before they became "Internet Stars." Which brings me to Jack Ma, founder and now billionaire owner of Alibaba.com. I am sure most readers know that yesterday Yahoo announced that it was buying a 40% interest in Alibaba for $1 billion and at the sametime turning over its China operations to Alibaba. (This is quite similar in nature to the Softbank investment in Yahoo! back in 1995 which turned out to be the salvation of Softbank.)

I had the privilege of Jack wanting to meet me in Hong Kong in 1999. He sought me out for a meal on one of my frequent trips to Asia. I was a bit puzzled about what Jack wanted during the meal. We were doing venture capital in those days. I asked him if was he looking for us to invest in Alibaba? He responded that he did not need investment, but that he wanted to get my opinion on what he was setting out to do with Alibaba etc. I told him he had a good concept. It was a pleasent 90 minutes.

I cannot tell you that I knew at that moment that Alibaba would be worth billions, but I did know Jack was a winner.