IBM Had to Hide the PC From Itself

In 1980, IBM was the biggest computer company in the world — and it could not build a personal computer. It had tried twice. Both times the project got buried in company rules. So the CEO picked one man, sent him to Florida, and gave him permission to break every rule IBM had. In one year, that team built the foundation for every computer you've used since. Four years later, IBM took the permission back. One story. One idea you can actually use. Every episode. 00:00 1980 00:35 Two failures 01:43 Florida 02:31 One year 03:41 The clause 04:43 The copies 05:47 Taking it back 07:24 The part worth keeping 07:53 Estridge I'm Hess. I make these on my own — no team, no studio. The narration is AI. Every fact in it is sourced and checked before it goes out. Sources: Bresnahan, Greenstein & Henderson (NBER/HBS) · Computer History Museum · technicshistory · Wikipedia New episode when it's ready. This is Blacklight. Where we trace how the giants rose, and why they fell.