Who is Joi Ito and what happened to him after the Epstein scandal?

Joi Ito was the director of the MIT Media Lab from 2011 to 2019. A prominent figure in technology and venture capital communities, Ito recruited significant donations to the lab including those from Epstein. When Ronan Farrow’s New Yorker reporting in September 2019 revealed that Ito had knowingly directed Epstein donations to be concealed and had personally interacted with Epstein after his 2008 conviction, Ito immediately resigned from the Media Lab directorship, from the MIT corporation, and from board positions at multiple companies including The New York Times Company, MacArthur Foundation, and others. He subsequently wrote a public apology and explanation but has faced lasting reputational consequences.