Dr. Mark Dean

By the time he graduated high school, computer whiz and African American inventor Mark Dean had already built his own computer, radio and amplifier. He then studied electrical engineering in college and eventually went on to obtain a Ph.D.

In 1980, Dean began working at IBM, where he was instrumental in the development of the “Personal Computer” (PC), thereby solidifying his place among the most accomplished black inventors. He currently holds three of IBM's original nine PC patents and more than 20 patents overall.

One of his most recent achievements has been leading the team that helped produce the 1-Gigahertz chip, which contains one million transistors.