July 17, 1899: NEC Was Founded in Tokyo

On July 17, 1899, Nippon Electric Company (NEC) was founded in Tokyo. It was established by engineer Kunihiko Iwadare together with representatives of the American company Western Electric.

Japan’s First International Technology Company

NEC was founded just as Japan opened its economy to foreign direct investment following the revision of the unequal treaties. Through its partnership with Western Electric, the company gained access to advanced telephone technologies and began building its own manufacturing capabilities. This became one of the foundations of Japan’s modern electronics industry.

A Leader in Japanese Computing

After World War II, NEC invested heavily in developing its own computers. In 1958, the company introduced the NEAC-2201, Japan’s first fully transistorized computer. It later developed the ACOS family of mainframes, which became widely used by government agencies and large enterprises.

The Platform That Defined Japanese PCs

In 1979, NEC released the PC-8001, followed by the PC-9801 in 1982. The PC-98 series became the de facto standard for the Japanese personal computer market throughout the 1980s and the first half of the 1990s. Thousands of software applications and video games were developed for the platform, many of which were never officially released outside Japan.

It Predicted the Convergence of Computing and Communications

In 1977, NEC chairman Koji Kobayashi introduced the C&C (Computers & Communications) concept. He envisioned computers and telecommunications gradually merging into a single information infrastructure. The idea was proposed while ARPANET was still in operation, long before the Internet became a mainstream technology. NEC’s corporate strategy would revolve around this vision for decades.

Advances in Semiconductors and Supercomputing

NEC became one of the world’s leading manufacturers of DRAM memory chips and developed the high-performance SX series of supercomputers. In 2002, the company’s Earth Simulator was recognized as the fastest supercomputer in the world.

Interesting Links

• History of NEC
• NEC 120 Years
• NEC Integrated Report 2021
• NEC Technical Journal Archive

See also The 1993 Supercomputing Race: NEC Challenges Cray in a Global Tech Battle.