IBM
A company in the archive: 3 stories feature IBM. Each one is sourced and dated.
Stories featuring IBM
In the archive
- How Microsoft Bought DOS for $75,000$75,000→$331.8BPaid for DOS → Revenue, FY2026
In 1980 IBM needed an operating system for its first PC. Microsoft didn't have one, so it bought one from a small Seattle company for a total of $75,000. In fiscal 2026 Microsoft had revenue of $331.8 billion.
- Liquid Paper: From a Kitchen Bottle to a $47.5 Million Sale$300→$47.5MMonthly salary → Sold for
Bette Nesmith Graham was a single mother typing letters at a Dallas bank when she started hiding her typos with white paint. In 1979 Gillette paid $47.5 million for the company built on that bottle.
- Bubble Wrap Was Supposed to Be WallpaperTwo shower curtains→$10.3BFirst prototype → Enterprise value
Two engineers in New Jersey sealed a pair of shower curtains together in 1957 and tried to sell the result as wallpaper. Then as greenhouse insulation. It took an IBM computer to find out what it was for.
