IBM vs McDonald's: Founders, CEOs and History

Company facts

Founders

CEOs and their tenures

Timeline: IBM and McDonald's side by side

1. 1911IBM

   Computing-Tabulating-Recording Company Founded

   Charles Ranlett Flint merged the Tabulating Machine Company, International Time Recording Company, Computing Scale Company, and Bundy Manufacturing Company to form CTR - the company that would become IBM.

2. 1924IBM

   Renamed to International Business Machines

   Under Thomas J. Watson Sr. CTR was renamed International Business Machines Corporation (IBM), reflecting the company's growing international presence and ambition beyond tabulating machines.

3. 1940McDonald's

   First McDonald's Opens in San Bernardino

   Richard and Maurice McDonald opened the first McDonald's restaurant on May 15, 1940 in San Bernardino, California. The original drive-in gave the brothers a live operating laboratory before they stripped the model down to a faster, lower-cost menu.

4. 1948McDonald's

   Speedee Service System Introduced

   The brothers simplified operations in 1948 around 15-cent hamburgers, shakes, and fries.

5. 1952IBM

   IBM 701 - First Commercial Computer

   IBM launched the 701, its first commercially available electronic computer, marking the company's decisive entry into the electronic computing era and beginning its dominance of the mainframe market.

6. 1955McDonald's

   Ray Kroc Opens Des Plaines Restaurant

   Ray Kroc opened his first McDonald's in Des Plaines, Illinois on April 15, 1955 after becoming the brothers' franchise agent. That restaurant became the base for converting a California operating idea into a national franchise system.

7. 1961McDonald's

   Hamburger University Opens

   Hamburger University opened in the basement of an Elk Grove Village, Illinois restaurant in 1961. The training program mattered because it formalized the standards and operating routines that franchisees needed to deliver a consistent experience.

8. 1961McDonald's

   Kroc Buys the Brothers' Company

   McDonald's says it acquired the rights to the brothers' company in 1961 for $2.7 million. The deal gave Kroc control of the name and system, setting up the real estate-backed franchise model that later defined parent-company economics.

9. 1964IBM

   System/360 Launch

   IBM launched the System/360, a compatible family of computers spanning all price points. The $5 billion investment was the largest privately funded project at the time and established the mainframe industry standard for decades.

10. 1968McDonald's

    Big Mac Added to National Menu

    The Big Mac, developed by owner-operator Jim Delligatti of Pittsburgh, was added to the national menu in 1968. It became a durable core product and a recognizable signal of the company's ability to turn franchisee ideas into systemwide menu platforms.

11. 1975McDonald's

    Egg McMuffin Builds Breakfast

    The Egg McMuffin, created by owner-operator Herb Peterson of Santa Barbara, California, was added to the national menu in 1975. It helped turn breakfast into a major daypart rather than leaving the restaurants dependent on lunch and dinner traffic.

12. 1981IBM

    IBM Personal Computer Launch

    IBM introduced the IBM PC, which standardized personal computing architecture and created the PC industry. The open architecture decision inadvertently created the Wintel duopoly that would ultimately commoditize IBM's own PC business.

13. 1993IBM

    Lou Gerstner Arrives - Turnaround Begins

    Louis V. Gerstner Jr. Became CEO as IBM posted $8 billion in losses. His decision to keep IBM intact rather than break it up, and to pivot toward services, saved the company and redefined its business model for the next two decades.

14. 1997IBM

    Deep Blue Defeats Kasparov

    IBM's Deep Blue supercomputer defeated world chess champion Garry Kasparov, becoming the first computer to beat a reigning world champion in a full match and establishing IBM's brand in artificial intelligence.

15. 2003McDonald's

    I'm Lovin' It Campaign Launches

    McDonald's launched its global "I'm lovin' it" marketing campaign in 2003, its first worldwide brand campaign.

16. 2017McDonald's

    Global McDelivery Day with UberEATS

    McDonald's marked Global McDelivery Day in 2017 to support the broader launch of McDelivery with UberEATS. Delivery expanded restaurant reach beyond the counter and drive-thru, while also adding packaging, marketplace-fee, and kitchen-throughput challenges.

17. 2019IBM

    Red Hat Acquisition Closes

    IBM completed the $34 billion acquisition of Red Hat, the largest software acquisition in history at the time. The deal anchored IBM's hybrid cloud strategy and provided the OpenShift platform as the foundation for enterprise Kubernetes.

18. 2019McDonald's

    Dynamic Yield Acquisition

    McDonald's agreed to acquire Dynamic Yield in 2019 to personalize drive-thru menu boards, kiosks, and app experiences using signals such as time of day, weather, restaurant traffic, and trending items.

19. 2021IBM

    Kyndryl Spinoff

    IBM spun off its managed infrastructure services business as Kyndryl Holdings, removing approximately $19 billion in low-margin revenue to focus the remaining company on higher-margin software and consulting.

20. 2023IBM

    Watsonx Platform Launch

    IBM launched watsonx, its enterprise AI and data platform combining foundation models (Granite), data management (watsonx.data), and AI governance (watsonx.governance). The platform represents IBM's AI strategy for the generative AI era.

21. 2024McDonald's

    Quarter Pounder E. Coli Outbreak

    U.S. Public health agencies linked a 2024 E. Coli outbreak to slivered onions served on McDonald's Quarter Pounders in affected states.

22. 2025McDonald's

    $26.9B FY2025 Revenue

    McDonald's reported $26.885 billion in FY2025 revenue and $8.563 billion in net income.

23. 2026IBM

    Confluent Acquisition Closes

    IBM completed its roughly $11 billion acquisition of Confluent, adding real-time data streaming used by more than 6,500 enterprises to its AI and hybrid cloud software.

Acquisitions

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