Controversies and collapsesAustin was once the home of Ross Ulbricht, creator of the infamous darknet marketplace Silk Road. Operating under the pseudonym “Dread Pirate Roberts” — an homage to the movie The Princess Bride —Ulbricht started developing the site in 2010 after returning to Austin following his graduation from Penn State. He avoided the authorities until his arrest in San Francisco in 2013. Silk Road allowed users to buy and sell illicit goods such as weapons and stolen credit car...