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It was not too long ago that tech companies were tagged as the companies of the future. Well, the future has arrived, and these companies are some of the most admired in the world. Tech companies are companies whose activities are connected either directly or indirectly to the information technology industry. These activities may include those that deal with computer hardware, software, semiconductor, electronics, the Internet, telecommunication, and other
computer services.
Here is a list of the top ten tech companies in the world, based on annual revenues reported.
1. Apple, Inc., United States – $156.5 billion
Who else would be on top but Apple? The company is based in Cupertino in California and is known for its groundbreaking designs and cutting edge gadgets. Everyone has encountered at least one of its items, be it the Mac computers, notebooks, iPad tablets, iPhones, or the iPod mp3 music player. Its software includes the OS X and iOS operating systems, iTunes, iLife, iWork and the Safari web browser. It has more than 70,000 staff that are employed on a full-time and permanent basis, aside from 3,300 temporary employees. Its annual revenue has more than doubled from 2010 when it only earned $65 billion. And you can expect this number to keep going up, as Apple’s product launches are events that the whole world waits for.
2. Samsung Electronics, South Korea – $149 billion
Samsung is a multinational electronics company based in Suwon in South Korea. It employs almost 221,000 people and has production and assembly plants and sales networks in 61 countries around the world. It is the largest maker of mobile phones in the world, the largest television manufacturer in the world, the largest LCD panel maker in the world, largest seller of memory chips in the world, and largest vendor of smart phones in the world. It is also the second largest semiconductor chip-maker in the world. It is currently involved in a legal tussle with Apple regarding copyright issues.
3. Hewlett Packard, United States – $120.35 billion
Hewlett Packard Company, or HP, is an American multinational company based in Palo Alto in California. It was the largest manufacturer of personal computers until 2012 when the Chinese giant Lenovo overtook it. The company is a provider of products, technologies, software, services and solutions to its customers. Its customers range from simple consumers to giant enterprises. It also has clients in the education, government and health sectors.
4. Foxconn, Taiwan – $117.51 billion
Its full name is the Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. Ltd, but it trades by the name of Foxconn. The electronics manufacturing company is based in Tucheng in New Taipei in Taiwan. It is considered to be the largest maker of electronic components in the world. It is involved in the production of such products as Apple’s iPad, iPod and iPhone, as well as Amazon’s Kindle, Sony’s PlayStation 3, Nintendo’s Wii U, and Microsoft’s Xbox 360.
5. IBM, United States – $106.91 billion
The International Business Machines Corporation is based in Armonk in New York. It produces and markets computer hardware and software. It also offers consulting, hosting and infrastructure services in fields ranging from nanotechnology and mainframe computers. It has the record for most patents by a company, which it has held for 19 straight years. The company is also credited for inventing the ATM, the floppy disk, the hard disk drive, the magnetic stripe, the Universal Product Code and the SABRE airline reservation system.
6. Panasonic, Japan – $99.65 billion
The company was formerly known as Matsushita Electric Industrial Co. Ltd. It is based in Osaka in Japan. Konosuke Matsushita founded the company in 1918, and it originally sold only duplex lamp sockets. It has since grown to become the fifth largest manufacturer of televisions in the world and one of the 20 largest vendors of semiconductors in the world. It changed its name to Panasonic Corporation in 2008 to align it with its global brand name.
7. Toshiba, Japan – $74.39 billion
Toshiba is a Japanese engineering and electronics company based in Tokyo in Japan. It manufactures and markets electrical products for information and communications equipment and systems, internet-based solutions, power systems, household appliances, electronic components and industrial infrastructure systems. It is one of the largest vendors of semiconductors and personal computers in the world.
8. Microsoft, United States – $73.72 billion
It is considered to be one of the most valuable companies in the world. It is also the largest software maker in the world based on revenues. The company was founded in 1975 by Bill Gates and Paul Allen, and has its headquarters in Redmond in Washington State. It dominated the personal computer operating system market from the mid 80s to the 2000s, even though there were frequent complaints on the system being buggy and vulnerable. It also held a practical stranglehold on the productivity suite market with its Microsoft Office brand of documents, spreadsheets and presentations. It has since diversified, and it now owns Skype Technologies. It also has a strong foothold in the video game market through its Microsoft Xbox and Xbox 360 consoles.
9. Sony, Japan – $67.4 billion
Sony is a multinational corporation based in Tokyo in Japan. It has interests in various tech sectors, like electronics, games, entertainment and financial services. It is the third largest manufacturer of televisions in the world and is one of the 20 largest vendors of semiconductors in the world. Consumers may also be familiar with Sony because of the Ericsson brand of mobile phones, as well as the video game consoles of PlayStation and PSP. The company also has interests in music, publishing and the movies.
10. Dell, United States – $62.07 billion
Dell is a computer technology firm based in Round Rock in Texas. It creates, develops, markets, sells, repairs and supports computers and its related products and services. It also sells data storage devices, network switches and other peripherals. It is considered to be one of the largest personal computer vendors in the world.