Who Invented the Computer?

<!DOCTYPE html> <html class="no-js"> <head>  <script>(function(w,d,s,l,i){w[l]=w[l]||[];w[l].push({'gtm.start': new Date().getTime(),event:'gtm.js'});var f=d.getElementsByTagName(s)[0], j=d.createElement(s),dl=l!='dataLayer'?'&l='+l:'';j.async=true;j.src= 'https://www.googletagmanager.com/gtm.js?id='+i+dl;f.parentNode.insertBefore(j,f); })(window,document,'script','dataLayer','GTM-MLN7JPS');</script>  <script type="text/javascript"> document.documentElement.className = 'js'; </script> <meta http-equiv="Content-Type" content="text/html; charset=utf-8" /> <meta http-equiv="X-Ua-Compatible" content="IE=8,chrome=1" /> <meta name="title" content="Computer History Museum" /> <title> Who Invented the Computer? - CHM Revolution </title> <link rel="shortcut icon" href="/favicon.ico" /> <link rel="apple-touch-icon" href="/revolution/images/favicon_129x129.png" /> <link rel="alternate" type="application/rss+xml" title="Computer History Museum New Stories" href="/revolution/feed/new-stories-rss.xml" /> <meta name="description" content="Who invented the computer? There are more than a dozen legitimate contenders to consider, all designers of unique, remarkable machines. But with facts and timelines clouded by controversy, contradictions, and intrigue, debate has raged in courtrooms and classrooms for decades. The answer may surprise you."/><meta name="keywords" content="People, Video"/><link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="screen" href="/revolution/css/main.css" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="print" href="/revolution/css/print.css" /> <link rel="stylesheet" type="text/css" media="screen" href="/revolution/css/topic.css" /> </head>       <body id="topic" class="topic_index">  <noscript><iframe src="https://www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-MLN7JPS" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript>  <div id="root"> <div id="header"><div class="header_wrapper"> <h1><a href="http://www.computerhistory.org/">CHM Revolution</a></h1> <ul class="top_nav_items no-print"> <li id="header-search" class="last"> <form action="/revolution/search" method="GET"> <div class="search-field"> <input type="text" class="text" placeholder="Search Exhibit" name="q" id="mainSearch" /> <input type="image" value="Search" src="/revolution/images/search-go.png" class="search-go" /> </div> </form> </li> <li id="header-topics"><a href="/revolution/topics"><span class="png_bg">Topics</span></a></li> <li id="header-home" class="first"><a href="/revolution/"><span class="png_bg">Home</span></a></li> </ul> </div></div> <div id="frame"> <div id="paging" class="no-print"><div class="content_wrapper"> <h6> <a class="first" href="/revolution/topics#exhibition">Exhibition</a> <a class="last" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/intro">Birth of the Computer</a> </h6> <ul class="chiclets"><li class="first"><a title="Birth of the Computer Introduction" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4">1</a></li><li class=""><a title="Computers <em>Before</em> Computers" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/83">2</a></li><li class=""><a title="Konrad Zuse" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/84">3</a></li><li class=""><a title="George Stibitz" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/85">4</a></li><li class=""><a title="Howard Aiken" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/86">5</a></li><li class=""><a title="ENIAC" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/78">6</a></li><li class=""><a title="The Minds Behind ENIAC" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/80">7</a></li><li class=""><a title="Breaking the Code" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/82">8</a></li><li class=""><a title="The Stored Program" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/87">9</a></li><li class=""><a title="Making the Case" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/88">10</a></li><li class=""><a title="The First Generation" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/92">11</a></li><li class=""><a title="JOHNNIAC" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/94">12</a></li><li class=""><a title="EDSAC" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/95">13</a></li><li class=""><a title="Pilot ACE" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/96">14</a></li><li class=""><a title="A New Speed Record" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/97">15</a></li><li class=""><a title="Atanasoff-Berry Computer" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/99">16</a></li><li class="last active"><a title="Who Invented the Computer?" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/91">17</a></li></ul> </div></div> <div id="content"> <div id="horizontalTopic" class="horizontalTopicStoryIndex16"> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Birth of the Computer"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/intro">01</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 4px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/intro"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Computers <em>Before</em> Computers"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/83">02</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 20px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/83"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Konrad Zuse"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/84">03</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 24px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/84"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="George Stibitz"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/85">04</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 20px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/85"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Howard Aiken"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/86">05</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 28px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/86"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="ENIAC"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/78">06</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 48px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/78"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="The Minds Behind ENIAC"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/80">07</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 40px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/80"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Breaking the Code"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/82">08</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 20px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/82"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="The Stored Program"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/87">09</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 28px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/87"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Making the Case"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/88">10</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 16px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/88"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="The First Generation"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/92">11</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 36px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/92"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="JOHNNIAC"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/94">12</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 44px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/94"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="EDSAC"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/95">13</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 12px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/95"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Pilot ACE"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/96">14</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 16px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/96"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="A New Speed Record"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/97">15</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 24px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/97"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_unfocused no-print" title="Atanasoff-Berry Computer"> <a class="number" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/99">16</a> <div class="infographic" style="height: 36px;"></div> <a class="closedLink" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/99"> </a> </div> <div class="story story_focused"> <span class="number no-print">17</span> <div class="story_wrapper"> <h1> <span class="title">Who Invented the Computer?</span> </h1> <div id="story-hero"> <div class="artifact video one_column"> <div class="artifact-image"> <a class="poster" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/91/2214"><img width="532" title="Who Invented the Computer?" src="https://d34zi8nxray0rk.cloudfront.net/102695599-03-01.jpg?" /><span></span></a> <a class="zoom no-print" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/91/2214">View Artifact Detail</a> </div> <div class="artifact-text"> <h6><a href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/91/2214">Who Invented the Computer?</a></h6> </div> </div> </div> <div id="left-column"> <div class="artifacts"> <div class="artifact text_artifact two_column"> <h6>Who invented the computer? </h6> <p>There are more than a dozen legitimate contenders to consider, all designers of unique, remarkable machines. But with facts and timelines clouded by controversy, contradictions, and intrigue, debate has raged in courtrooms and classrooms for decades. The answer may surprise you.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div id="information"> <div class="keywords"> <h5>Keywords</h5> <ul> <li><a href="/revolution/search?q=keywords%3A%22People%22">People</a></li> <li><a href="/revolution/search?q=keywords%3A%22Video%22">Video</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div id="topicPagination"> <div id="previous" class="no-print"><a rel="prev" href="/revolution/birth-of-the-computer/4/99">Previous</a></div> </div> </div> </div> <div id="root_footer"></div> </div> <div id="footer"><div class="content_wrapper"> <p><a href="http://www.computerhistory.org/terms/" target="_blank">Copyright ©1996-2024 Computer History Museum</a></p> <ul id="footer_links" class="no-print"> <li><a href="http://www.computerhistory.org/contact/">Connect</a></li> <li><a href="/revolution/credits">Credits</a></li> <li class="feed"><a href="/revolution/feed/new-stories-rss.xml"><img width="14" height="14" alt="Subscribe" src="/revolution/images/feed-icon-14x14.png" /></a></li> </ul> </div></div> <script type="text/javascript" src="/revolution/js/steal/steal.production.js?topic"></script> <script type="text/javascript"> var _gaq = _gaq || []; _gaq.push(['_setAccount', 'UA-604998-1']); _gaq.push(['_trackPageview']); (function() { var ga = document.createElement('script'); ga.type = 'text/javascript'; ga.async = true; ga.src = ('https:' == document.location.protocol ? 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Who Invented the Computer? - CHM Revolution