Cray Research was a supercomputer company founded by Seymour Cray in 1972. For two decades, Cray was synonymous with supercomputing, producing the world’s fastest computers for scientific research, weather prediction, and national security.
Founding
Seymour Cray left Control Data Corporation to found Cray Research, seeking the freedom to focus on building the world’s fastest computers. The company was headquartered in Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin, near Cray’s home.
Products
Cray Research produced landmark supercomputers:
- Cray-1 (1976): The iconic vector processor
- Cray X-MP (1982): Multi-processor successor
- Cray-2 (1985): Revolutionary liquid immersion cooling
- Cray Y-MP (1988): Continued vector computing dominance
Impact
Cray supercomputers advanced:
- Weather forecasting accuracy
- Nuclear weapons design (without testing)
- Aerospace engineering simulations
- Oil and gas exploration
- Academic scientific research
Legacy
Cray Research merged with SGI in 1996, and the Cray brand passed through several owners. The name lives on in modern supercomputing, though the technology has shifted from Cray’s vector processing to massively parallel architectures.