The Rise of the Internet

The Internet is the global system of interconnected computer networks that originated in the late 20th century. It traces its roots back to 1969, when the United States Department of Defense funded ARPANET, the first packet-switching network, primarily for research and military communication. In 1983, TCP/IP became the standard protocol of ARPANET, laying the foundation for the modern Internet. In 1989, British scientist Tim Berners-Lee proposed the World Wide Web at CERN, and by 1991 the first website was made publicly available. During the 1990s, the rise of browsers and personal computers brought the Internet to households around the world. In 1995, Amazon and eBay were founded, ushering in the era of e-commerce. In 2004, Facebook launched, turning social networks into a central part of online life. In 2007, Apple released the first iPhone, kicking off the mobile Internet era. Throughout the 2010s, cloud computing and big data matured, and artificial intelligence began to make headlines. In November 2022, OpenAI released ChatGPT, igniting the generative AI boom. Today, the Internet touches nearly every aspect of human life, transforming how we communicate, work, learn, and create culture.