5 Amazing Black Americans Who Revolutionized Technology

February, 2023 – As we celebrate Black History Month, we take a look at five Americans who have made significant contributions to information technology. Their groundbreaking work helped shape technology as we know it today and will continue to inspire future generations. 

• Mark Dean – Dean developed the ISA bus, was a key player in the development of the IBM personal computer and was co-inventor of the first PC with a 1-gigahertz processor. He holds three of IBM’s original nine patents and is widely recognized as a computer engineering pioneer. 
• Mae C. Jemison – Jemison is a former NASA astronaut and the first black woman to travel to space. She also founded the Jemison Group, which develops technology for use in daily life and for space travel.
• Katherine Johnson – Johnson was a mathematician and computer scientist who made significant contributions to NASA early space missions. She was responsible for hand-calculating the trajectories of many spaceflights, including the first American manned space mission to orbit the Earth.
• Philip Emeagwali – Emeagwali is a Nigerian-American computer scientist and mathematician who is known for his contributions to high-performance computing and the development of the world’s fastest computer. He is also a recipient of the Gordon Bell Prize, considered the highest award in the field of high-performance computing.
• Kimberly Bryant – Bryant is an engineer and biotechnologist who made it her life’s work to provide technology education to young girls of color and advocate for diversity in technology fields. She founded Black Girls Code, a San Francisco-based nonprofit with fifteen chapters in the United States and abroad

These are just a few of the many black Americans who are helping advance the state of IT and shape our world. Their work serves as a reminder of the importance of diversity in STEM fields.