In 1962, IBM built a secret NSA computer that ran jobs up to 200 times faster than any other machine; 14 years later a worn-out part ended its run because its maker was no longer in business

IBM built a secret computer for the US National Security Agency that began operating in 1962 and remained in service for 14 years, processing some of the agency’s most sensitive cryptographic workloads during the Cold War. Known as Harvest, the machine could run certain jobs up to 200 times faster than other computers of its time, according to accounts of its capabilities.According to a report by IEEE Spectrum, Harvest finally stopped running on February 27, 1976, after a mechanical component in its automated tape library wore out. The manufacturer of the part was no longer in business, leaving the NSA without a practical way to replace it. By then, the machine had operated through the Cuban Missile Crisis, the Vietnam War, and the period leading up to the 1975 Helsinki Accords.

IBM built Harvest as a specialised NSA computer

Harvest was officially designated the IBM 7950 and was built around IBM’s 7030 Stretch mainframe. IBM developed Stretch for…