The Typewriter Company That Built Computers

In the 1950s, a famous typewriter manufacturer sold one of the earliest off-the-shelf computers. The LGP-30 cost over half a million dollars in today's money and brought computing power to the masses.

While we now associate Royal with office typewriters, they ventured into high-tech innovation through a unique partnership. This bulky machine was designed for accessibility, aiming to be a general-purpose tool rather than just a military research device. It showed that computing was starting to transition from massive, custom-built laboratory curiosities into products that could be ordered and installed in business offices. This surprising pivot paved the way for the personal computing revolution that followed decades later.