By Douglas A. McIntyre
Publication Date: 2026-02-18 13:49:00
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IBM Was Tech Leader In The 1980s
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It Was Left Behind in Smartphones And AI
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Microsoft and Apple Now Lead The Industry
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IBM (NYSE: IBM) ranked No. 1 by market capitalization in the US in 1985, according to a study by Axios. By 1995 and 2005, under legendary CEO Jack Welch (who retired in 2001), GE was the world’s largest conglomerate and ranked in first place. GE was surpassed by Apple (NASDAQ: AAPL) in 2015 as the new era of technology emerged. Apple held that spot again in 2025,
To show its tech dominance over the decades, Microsoft (NASDAQ: MSFT) ranked third in 2005, 2015, and 2025
What happened to IBM? The tech revolution passed it by as it missed its chance to control the PC operating system, chips, the smartphone industry, the emergence of online content, and, finally AI, It should have been, based on its 1980s…