Sun Built the Internet’s Backbone — and Died Watching It Grow

In the annals of tech history, few companies embody both groundbreaking innovation and a perplexing downfall quite like Sun Microsystems. From its founding in 1982, Sun championed the radical vision that "The Network is the Computer," laying much of the foundational infrastructure that allowed the internet to flourish. It delivered critical hardware and software, including the ubiquitous Java programming language, yet despite its profound influence and widespread adoption of its technologies, Sun ultimately failed to translate its ubiquity into lasting control or economic dominance, leading to its acquisition by Oracle in 2010.

Sun Microsystems was not just a participant in the early internet; it was an architect.

Its philosophy of open systems resonated deeply with the internet's nascent, collaborative spirit. The company's invention of the Network File System (NFS) became an open standard, allowing seamless file sharing across networks and embodying its network-centric vision. Sun's UNIX-based workstations quickly became the go-to servers for the burgeoning internet, a natural fit given UNIX's lineage with ARPANET, the internet's precursor. Indeed, at one point, a staggering 70% of internet applications were developed on Sun's technology, underscoring its pivotal role in building the very backbone of the digital world. Sun even pioneered the use of the internet for research and customer service, demonstrating an early understanding of its potential beyond pure technical infrastructure.