DEC Founder Said "There Is No Reason Anyone Would Want a Computer in Their Home." Today There Are 6 Billion of Them.

Ken Olsen wasn't some random talking head — he was one of the most respected engineers in computing history. He founded Digital Equipment Corporation in 1957 and built it into the second-largest computer company in the world, behind only IBM. At its peak in 1987, DEC had $14 billion in annual sales, a $24 billion market cap, and over 140,000 employees. The man was a genuine pioneer.

Which makes his 1977 dismissal of home computers all the more spectacular. While Olsen was busy telling his engineers to focus on "real" computers, a couple of guys named Steve were tinkering in a garage in California. Three years after Olsen's quote, IBM launched the PC. Five years after that, Microsoft went public.

Olsen was forced out of DEC in 1992 as the company spiraled into irrelevance, having completely missed the personal computer revolution. DEC was sold to Compaq in 1998 for $9.6 billion — less than half its peak value — and the brand was eventually absorbed into HP.

Meanwhile, the market Olsen said would never exist? It's now worth trillions. Apple alone has shipped over 2.5 billion iPhones. There are now more personal computing devices on Earth than people. Turns out there were a few reasons after all.