Believe it or not, New Jersey‘s tech innovation traces back to the 19th century when Thomas Edison set up his legendary Menlo Park lab in 1876. There, Edison would churn out world-changing inventions like the electric lightbulb, motion picture camera, phonograph, and over 1,000 patents more.
Edison‘s prolific output kickstarted New Jersey‘s rise as a formidable technology hotspot over the next hundred-plus years. Let‘s explore some of the key enterprises that emerged to shape computing, communications, healthcare advancements and beyond.
Laying the Groundwork
Before diving into present-day giants, we should understand several foundational companies that put New Jersey tech on the map.
In 1892, Thomas Edison General Electric merged with the Thomson-Houston Electric Company to birth General Electric (GE), an original member of the Dow Jones Industrial Average focusing on electrical infrastructure. And the early 1900s saw RCA Corporation leverage its radio/broadcast technology to break ground in television, satellites, music recording, and even computer development later on.
Yet no company influenced modern-day New Jersey technology more profoundly than Bell Labs, the legendary research arm of AT&T founded in 1925. Headquartered in Murray Hill, Bell Labs served as an innovation factory responsible for the first sound film, silicon transistor, communications satellite, laser, solar battery, C programming language, and UNIX operating system among countless more breakthroughs.
Ten Nobel prizes trace back to research conducted at Bell Labs. And early digital computers got kickstarted there in 1937. This astonishing run of innovations across materials science, telecommunications, optics, data systems and other spheres cemented New Jersey as a top-flight tech destination.
| Company | Year Founded | Description |
|---|---|---|
| General Electric | 1892 | Multinational infrastructure/financial services firm |
| RCA Corporation | 1919 | Media/technology conglomerate acquired by GE in 1986 |
| Bell Laboratories | 1925 | Research subsidiary of telecom giant AT&T |
Today‘s Titans of Tech
While Bell Labs‘ parent company AT&T decentralized its research arm in the 1980s and 90s, New Jersey maintains technology relevance today through public corporations and private disruptors alike.
In market cap terms, Johnson & Johnson stands tall as New Jersey‘s most prominent company. Though better known for pharmaceutical and medical devices, J&J funnels major funding into R&D to incorporate cutting-edge technological innovations into drugs and surgical products. Think robotically-assisted surgery and artificial intelligence detecting illness risks.
IDT Corporation makes our list for its long track record in tech and telecom, including automated payment processing. Dating back to 1990 with current market cap over $500M, IDT subsidiaries focus on everything from VOIP communication to mining Bitcoin.
Lesser known among the public companies, IPC Systems wields outsized influence as the leading global provider of network technology and infrastructure to the financial sector. After powering electronic trading floors for the NYSE, Nasdaq, and top investment banks since the 1970s, IPC Systems sold for a handsome $5.2 billion valuation to Goldman Sachs in 2022.
Meanwhile, younger private companies make noise advancing New Jersey‘s tech economy. OwnBackup just crossed the unicorn threshold after raising $240M to protect enterprise data across cloud platforms. And CoreWeave offers a unique spin on cloud infrastructure – customizable, high-performance computing built on specialized hardware for the most data-intensive applications. CoreWeave has racked up over $100M funding so far.
| Company | Founded | Valuation | Description |
|---|---|---|---|
| Johnson & Johnson | 1886 | $430B market cap | Leading healthcare/pharma giant |
| IDT Corporation | 1990 | $600M market cap | Telecom/payments firm going strong after 30+ years |
| IPC Systems | 1973 | Acquired for $5.2B | Communication tech/infrastructure for financial sector |
| OwnBackup | 2015 | $1.4B | Cloud data backup & recovery solutions |
| CoreWeave | 2015 | $1.2B valuation | High-performance, flexible cloud infrastructure |
This table captures a snapshot of key stats for present-day technology companies headquartered in the state. Both long-running corporations and emerging startups flex their technical prowess from a New Jersey home base.
Forgotten Pioneers
Of course, in a century-plus of technology breakthroughs, some companies fail to stand the test of time. Financial turmoil, acquisitions, or fluctuating market dynamics can put once-thriving organizations on the backburner of tech history.
Take Public Service Electric and Gas Company (PSE&G) that electrified New Jersey homes and businesses over a hundred years before collapsing in scandals around the year 2000.
Or the Victor Talking Machine Company that ruled the recorded music universe under founder Eldridge Johnson before selling to Radio Corporation of America (RCA) in the 1920s. Though the names fade, these innovators laid vital technological and infrastructure groundwork in the state.
The Future Looks Bright
Thanks to globally-recognized research schools like Princeton churning out computing talent, coupled with ample in-state venture funding, New Jersey appears positioned for the next generation of tech trailblazers.
Boundless business opportunities around 5G networks, intelligent transportation, clean energy, and smart cities seduce entrepreneurs and investors alike to set up shop in the state. And staples like telecom infrastructure and pharmaceutical technology continue maturing from their New Jersey bases.
So while regional neighbors capture more buzz today, wise folks know better than to overlook little New Jersey when it comes to punching above its weight in technology prowess yesterday, today, and most certainly tomorrow!
