Mark Shuttleworth is a South African entrepreneur and space tourist, best known for founding the software company Canonical Ltd., which develops the popular Ubuntu operating system. He was born on September 18, 1973, in Pretoria, South Africa, and studied finance and information technology at the University of Cape Town. In 2002, Shuttleworth became the first African in space when he flew to the International Space Station aboard a Soyuz spacecraft. His journey was part of a mission to promote science and technology in Africa. Shuttleworth is also recognized for his contributions to open-source software and his philanthropic efforts in education and technology.