Richard Garriott is a key figure in two industries, computer games and commercial spaceflight. In games he has founded 3 noteworthy companies (Origin, Destination and Portalarium), he created the Ultima series and Ultima Online among many other products. He is a hall of fame inductee and lifetime achievement awardee, along with many other game industry awards. In commercial space he is a principal of or co-founded companies such as The X Prize, Space Adventures, Planetary Power and Planetary Resources. His companies have flown every private citizen who has traveled to space on their own, and he himself has flown to the International Space Station. His work in and on commercial space has earned him induction into the environmental hall of fame, the HAM radio hall of fame and he has received many other accolades for his space industry work.
Richard continues to be very active in both arenas.