Internet pioneer, songwriter John Perry Barlow dies at 70

John Perry Barlow, an internet activist and former lyricist for the Grateful Dead, has died.

The digital-rights group Electronic Frontier Foundation said in a statement that Barlow died early Wednesday morning in his sleep at age 70. The cause of death was not immediately known.

Barlow co-founded the EFF in 1990 to champion free expression and privacy online.

EFF says that Barlow, “always saw the internet as a fundamental place of freedom, where voices long silenced can find an audience and people can connect with others regardless of physical distance.”