The man who died when a small jet crashed on a Texas highway was an entrepreneur well-known in the state for being at the center of Austin's turbocharged evolution as a technology hub.

Joshua Baer, 50, described himself as an "Austinpreneur," a reference to the state capital and his enthusiasm for getting people into business.

He founded Capital Factory, which has grown into an important Austin-based venture capital firm supporting a range of technology startup companies, from robots to autonomous ships.