History of Technology News & Articles - IEEE Spectrum

See our latest special report, “Reinventing Invention: Stories From Innovation’s Edge” →

Close bar
IEEE Spectrum
FOR THE TECHNOLOGY INSIDER

Topics

AerospaceArtificial IntelligenceBiomedicalClimate TechComputingConsumer ElectronicsEnergyHistory of TechnologyRoboticsSemiconductorsTelecommunicationsTransportation

Sections

FeaturesNewsOpinionCareersDIYEngineering Resources

More

NewslettersPodcastsSpecial ReportsCollectionsExplainersTop Programming LanguagesRobots Guide ↗IEEE Job Site ↗

For IEEE Members

Current IssueMagazine ArchiveThe InstituteThe Institute Archive

For IEEE Members

Current IssueMagazine ArchiveThe InstituteThe Institute Archive

IEEE Spectrum

About UsContact UsReprints & Permissions ↗Advertising ↗

Follow IEEE Spectrum

Support IEEE Spectrum

IEEE Spectrum is the flagship publication of the IEEE — the world’s largest professional organization devoted to engineering and applied sciences. Our articles, podcasts, and infographics inform our readers about developments in technology, engineering, and science.
Join IEEE
Subscribe
JOIN IEEESIGN IN
Close

Access Thousands of Articles — Completely Free

Create an account and get exclusive content and features: Save articles, download collections, and talk to tech insiders — all free! For full access and benefits, join IEEE as a paying member.

History of Technology

A look back at key moments in the history of cyberspace, electronics, and the space age
History of TechnologyMagazineFeatureSemiconductors

The Forgotten Story of How IBM Invented the Automated Fab

Fifty years ago, a brash middle manager had a vision: a chip in a day

15 min read
A white line diagram against a blue background shows the basic layout of the Project SWIFT chip fabrication process.
Why the Art of Invention Is Always Being Reinvented
History of TechnologyNovember 2024MagazineFeatureSpecial Reports

Why the Art of Invention Is Always Being Reinvented

You need creativity and chutzpah to launch new ideas in tech

7 min read
A photo-collage showing Alexander G. Bell, JJ Carty, Woodrow Wilson, Thomas Watson, Theodore Vale, Michael Pupin and different US city locations as if they were in a zoom during the 1916 AIEE virtual meeting.
History of TechnologyArticleTelecommunications

The First Virtual Meeting Was in 1916

The amazing feat linked up 5,100 engineers from Atlanta to San Francisco

6 min read
A woman in a safety vest operates a packaging machine at Amazon.
AISponsored Article

Packaging and Robots

How AI and sustainability are transforming the journey from click to delivery at Amazon

Get Tech Alert in your inbox

Sign up for our FREE weekly newsletter featuring groundbreaking technology and science news from the editors of IEEE Spectrum
Close-up angle of a car's analog dashboard, featuring buttons, knobs and a CD slot.
Consumer ElectronicsHistory of TechnologyInterview

Touchscreens Are Out, and Tactile Controls Are Back

Rachel Plotnick’s “re-buttonization” expertise is in demand

6 min read
Photo of a round off-white appliance with black handles and a metal lid.
History of TechnologyMagazineNovember 2024ArticlePast ForwardSpecial ReportsConsumer Electronics

The Unlikely Inventor of the Automatic Rice Cooker

A Japanese housewife’s experiments cracked the code of perfectly cooked rice

7 min read

Download “The EV Transition Explained” E-book for Free

A 49-page report on the engineering challenges of making and supporting EVs at scale
Black-and-white photograph of a man in a three-piece suit holding a copy of Spectrum magazine. Behind him is a wall covered in diplomas and awards.
CareersMagazineIEEE HistoryHistory of TechnologyOpinion

This Engineer Became a Star in Technology Publishing

How Donald Christiansen Reinvented IEEE Spectrum magazine

5 min read
Photo of a rectangular red radio with a gold dial and a grid of holes on the front.
History of TechnologyOctober 2024MagazineArticlePast ForwardConsumer Electronics

The Incredible Story Behind the First Transistor Radio

The Regency TR-1 helped Texas Instruments launch its semiconductor business

7 min read

Journal Watch

The latest engineering and computer science advances in context from IEEE Spectrum and the Xplore Digital Library
SemiconductorsAINewsClimate TechJournal WatchClimate Change

Is Virtualization Greener Than Lab Work for Chips?

3 min read
3D rendering of a grass microchip with a globe icon in the center, being used on a circuit board.
EnergyAerospaceNewsJournal Watch

One Way That Could Improve Space-Based Power: Relays

3 min read
Illustration of a space satellite reflecting a signal in a zig-zag towards planet Earth.
TelecommunicationsMagazineNewsJournal Watch

Wi-Fi Goes Long Range on New WiLo Approach

2 min read
A digital rendering of colorful lines running through an aerial view of trees and sparse houses in a rural community.
SemiconductorsAerospaceNewsJournal Watch

Even Gamma Rays Can’t Stop This Memory

4 min read
A green circuit board, connected by wires to an orange external chip and a display showing voltage, current and radiation levels.
AIMagazineNovember 2024ComputingNewsJournal Watch

Predicting Malicious Behavior on X Before It Happens

2 min read
Illustration of a man holding a mobile phone with flames coming out of the screen

Get the latest technology news in your inbox

Subscribe to IEEE Spectrum’s newsletters by selecting from the list.
Black and white portrait photo of a woman with short cropped dark hair outdoors
History of TechnologyOctober 2024MagazineInterview

What It Takes To Let People Play With the Past

Libi Rose keeps obsolete technologies running at the Media Archaeology Lab

3 min read
Closeup of an apparatus that has a round copper mechanism attached to a bicycle chain, a glass lightbulb to the left and a metal disk at the back.
History of TechnologySeptember 2024MagazineArticlePast ForwardConsumer Electronics

In 1926, TV Was Mechanical

John Logie Baird’s television was based around a spinning metal disk

8 min read
From Punch Cards to Python
The InstituteWomen’s History MonthIEEE HistoryArticleSpectrum CollectionsComputingHistory of Technology

From Punch Cards to Python

Grace Hopper’s A-0 compiler paved the way for modern programming languages

6 min read

The Transistor at 75

The past, present, and future of the modern world’s most important invention
See the full collection →
Illustration of a cake with a candle shaped as a transistor symbol
A phot of an outstretched hand with several transistors in the palm of it.
SemiconductorsDecember 2022MagazineThe Transistor at 75FeatureSpecial Reports

How the First Transistor Worked

12 min read
A chart showing the timeline of when a transistor was invented and when it was commercialized.
SemiconductorsDecember 2022MagazineThe Transistor at 75FeatureHistory of TechnologySpecial Reports

The Ultimate Transistor Timeline

2 min read
A photo of 3 different transistors.
SemiconductorsDecember 2022MagazineThe Transistor at 75FeatureSpecial Reports

The State of the Transistor in 3 Charts

4 min read
An image of stacked squares with yellow flat bars through them.
SemiconductorsDecember 2022MagazineThe Transistor at 75FeatureSpecial Reports

3D-Stacked CMOS Takes Moore’s Law to New Heights

9 min read
Six men and a woman smiling.
SemiconductorsDecember 2022MagazineThe Transistor at 75FeatureSpecial Reports

The Transistor of 2047: Expert Predictions

5 min read
History of TechnologySeptember 2024MagazineEnergyInterview

How the Designer of the First Hydrogen Bomb Got the Gig

Richard Garwin was assigned the task by Edward Teller at age 23

17 min read
A photo of a smiling man and some art and icons.
Photo of a red and white box with the words “Battery AD-X2*” and a photo of a man’s face on it.
History of TechnologyAugust 2024MagazineEnergyArticlePast Forward

The Saga of AD-X2, the Battery Additive That Roiled the NBS

In the David vs. Goliath struggle over AD-X2, would science win?

9 min read
A photo-illustration showing 3 people working on 1980s era computers, with lines and arrows connecting them.
ComputingHistory of TechnologyFeature

The Rise of Groupware

How collaboration software came to be. Bonus: never-before-seen footage of Bill Gates on Broadway

10 min read
The original semiconductor laser team at IBM Research, from left to right: Gerald Burns, Marshall I. Nathan, Gordon Lasher, Frederick H. Dill Jr., and William P. Dumke.
The InstituteHistory of TechnologyIEEE HistoryArticle

Inside the Three-Way Race to Create the Most Widely Used Laser

GE, IBM, and MIT’s Lincoln Lab announced the advance days apart

6 min read
an old portrait of an older woman
The InstituteWomen’s History MonthIEEE HistoryArticleSpectrum CollectionsHistory of Technology

Edith Clarke: Architect of Modern Power Distribution

The first U.S. woman EE designed the Hoover Dam’s turbine system

4 min read