The Founding of Amdahl Corporation

The year was 1970, not a banner year for starting a company, for it was the middle of a major recession. Unexpected events that further complicated our progress seem to be, even in retrospect, virtually statistically impossible. Those complications were coupled with the challenge of developing new semiconductor, packaging, and cooling technologies with which to design a simpler, yet more powerful, computer that was compatible with IBM's System 360/370 product line. As a consequence, the development took about 50% longer and was more costly than expected, but it was an astounding success that greatly benefited the entire computing community.