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Microsoft

Founded by Bill Gates and Paul Allen to sell a BASIC interpreter for the Altair 8800, and located in Albuquerque because that was home to Altair maker MITS. It became the dominant PC software company.

Founded1975
HeadquartersAlbuquerque, NM
IndustrySoftware
microsoft.com
MITS Altair 8800 with Teletype Model 33 — the machine Microsoft's first BASIC ran on

MITS Altair 8800 with Teletype Model 33 — the machine Microsoft's first BASIC ran on · CC BY-SA 4.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Overview

Founders
Bill Gates and Paul Allen

Founded April 4, 1975

Landmark Achievements
  • Its BASIC was the first computer-language program for a personal computer; the company moved to the Seattle area in 1979.
  • Its MS-DOS/IBM PC deal (1980) and Windows made Microsoft's software the standard on the vast majority of the world's PCs.
  • Its March 13, 1986 IPO created three billionaires and an estimated 12,000 millionaires among Microsoft employees.

Microsoft's place in the story

Continue through the chronicle — the builders of American technology, in founding order.

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