Let’s be honest, when we think of the pioneers of tech, we often picture dudes in hoodies, sitting in dimly lit basements, whispering sweet nothings to Linux terminals. But let me stop you right there.
Before Silicon Valley had a name, before Mark Zuckerberg wore flip flops to board meetings, women were laying the foundations of computer science.
And not just participating, but leading. Yet somehow, their names often get left out of the tech history books (or mentioned like footnotes). So today, let’s do a little digital justice. Here are five women who shaped computing as we know it—and why we owe them more than a shoutout.
1. Ada Lovelace (1815–1852): The First Programmer.
Way back when the world thought “computer” meant “someone who does math with pen and paper,” Ada Lovelace was writing algorithms… for a machine that didn’t even exist yet.
She worked with Charles Babbage on the Analytical Engine, a proposed mechanical general-purpose computer. Babbage built the engine, but it was Ada who saw its true potential. In her notes, she outlined the first-ever algorithm designed to be carried out by a machine, a hundred years before modern computers were even a thing.
She envisioned that computers could go beyond crunching numbers, that they could one day create music, compose art, and simulate human thinking. And this was in the 1840s. Let that sit.
Today, the U.S. Department of Defense named its programming language “Ada” after her.
2. Grace Hopper (1906–1992): The Mother of Modern Programming
Grace Hopper is the reason we don’t all write code in 0s and 1s. She believed computers should speak a language closer to human English, and she made it happen. She developed the first compiler, which translated written language into machine-readable code, and helped create COBOL, one of the earliest programming languages used in business, banking, and government.
Grace was also a Rear Admiral in the U.S. Navy. Talk about multi-tasking. Hopper revolutionized programming by making it more accessible. She believed computing should empower people, not intimidate them.
She worked until she was 85 and has a Navy destroyer and a supercomputer named after her.
3. Katherine Johnson (1918–2020): The Human Computer Who Launched Us into Space
Katherine Johnson was one of NASA’s “human computers.” She hand-calculated flight paths for Project Mercury and Apollo 11, and her math was so precise, even digital computers were double-checked against her.
When John Glenn was preparing for his historic orbital flight, he literally said: “If she says they’re good, then I am ready to go.” That girl was Katherine. She didn’t just do math, she made space travel possible. Her trajectory calculations allowed astronauts to launch, orbit, and land safely.
As a Black woman in the 1950s and ’60s, she faced racial and gender discrimination daily, and still became a cornerstone of NASA’s success. She received the Presidential Medal of Freedom in 2015, and lived to see herself portrayed on the big screen in Hidden Figures.
4. Radia Perlman (b. 1951): The Woman Who Made the Internet Work
No, seriously. Without Radia, your WiFi wouldn’t work.
She invented the Spanning Tree Protocol (STP), which is fundamental to how networks avoid loops and chaos. This protocol is what allows large networks, like the internet, to function efficiently without crashing. Think of it like the traffic controller of the digital highway.
Her work laid the foundation for modern Ethernet, and by extension, the internet. It’s quiet brilliance like hers that makes everything else possible.
She once said, “I did indeed make some fundamental contributions to the underlying infrastructure, but no single technology really caused the Internet to succeed.” Radia also writes children’s books about technology — turning big concepts into bedtime stories. Now that’s versatility.
5. Margaret Hamilton (b. 1936): The Code That Saved the Moon Landing
When you see photos of Margaret Hamilton standing next to a stack of printed code taller than she is — that’s not drama, that’s her real work.
Margaret led the software engineering team for NASA’s Apollo missions. Her code made the onboard computer smart enough to prioritize tasks when things went wrong, which it did during the moon landing.
With just minutes left, the computer began to overload. Thanks to Margaret’s foresight, it dumped non-critical tasks and focused on what mattered most: getting those astronauts to land safely.
Her software literally prevented the moon landing from failing. She made computers smart enough to think on their (digital) feet. She coined the term “software engineering.” Before her, no one even thought software needed engineers.
Honestly, it’s wild that these women aren’t household names. We’ve got Ada Lovelace Day (second Tuesday in October) and the occasional Women’s Month posts, but that’s not enough.
These women were not diversity hires. They weren’t tokens or placeholders. They were pioneers. Architects. Problem-solvers. Leaders. And it’s about time we start telling their stories the same way we talk about Jobs, Gates, and Musk.
Whether you’re a developer, a student, or someone who just opened Notepad once by accident, these stories are yours too.
And if you’re a woman in tech now? You’re not following in their footsteps. You’re building on their foundation, and adding your own.
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