Ellison, Lawrence (1944-…), is cofounder and chief executive officer of Oracle Corporation. Oracle is one of the world’s leading developers of computer software.
Lawrence Joseph Ellison was born in New York City on Aug. 17, 1944, and grew up in Chicago. He studied physics at the University of Chicago but left college to pursue a career in high technology. In 1977, Ellison joined with Robert N. Miner and Ed Oates, former co-workers, to form Software Development Laboratories, Inc. The company developed software that enabled large organizations to create and maintain huge databases (collections of electronic information). In 1981, the company was renamed Relational Software Incorporated. The success of its information management software, called Oracle, prompted the company to change its name again in 1983, to Oracle Systems Corporation. The company’s name was later shortened to Oracle Corporation.
