Dr. Robert “Bob” Metcalfe is an Emeritus Professor of Electrical and Computer Engineering (ECE) at The University of Texas at Austin and a Research Affiliate in Computational Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) Computer Science & Artificial Intelligence Laboratory (CSAIL). He was an Internet pioneer at MIT starting in 1970 and in 1973 received his PhD from Harvard for Packet Communication. He invented Ethernet in 1973 and founded 3Com Corporation (now part of HP) in 1979. In 2022, he received the Turing Award, often referred to as the “Nobel Prize in Computing,” for the invention, standardization, and commercialization of Ethernet, the dominant way of connecting computers and billions of other devices to each other and the Internet.

Bob was also CEO of IDG’s InfoWorld Publishing Company (1992-1995). For eight years, he wrote an Internet column read weekly by 629,000 information technologists. He also wrote for The American Spectator, Forbes, Technology Review, The New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Wired.

For nearly a decade, Bob was a venture capitalist at Polaris Partners, where he invested in early-stage technology companies.

Awards:

In 1980, Bob received the Hopper Award from the Association for Computing Machinery (ACM).
In 1988, he received the Bell Medal from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE).
In 1995, Bob was elected to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences.
In 1996, he received the IEEE’s Medal of Honor.
In 1997, he was elected to the National Academy of Engineering, and in 1999, to the International Engineering Consortium.
In 2003, Bob received the Marconi Prize and was inducted into the prestigious Bay Shore High School Hall of Fame.
In a 2005 ceremony at the White House, Bob received the National Medal of Technology for his leadership in the invention, standardization, and commercialization of Ethernet.
Bob entered the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2007.