When I say mesh networking, I mean networking without central control or points of failure, a truly decentralized Internet in which participants can bootstrap and participate without permission and with impunity. Such a system requires a grand proliferation of hardware devices adhering to the same protocols. In short, it requires everyone to run their own node and for those nodes to speak the same language. Start9 aims to lead this march through EmbassyOS. We can't possibly predict which protocols and services will emerge as standards, and so we are developing an operating system that runs on commodity hardware that enables users to seamlessly choose and switch between various options. Whatever happens and whatever is needed, we know that physical devices and an operating system to manage them are essential prerequisites to any scale viable protocol or network.