Computer scientist Dr. Sophie Wilson is a named inventor on 80 patents belonging to 20 unique patent families. Among her most notable inventions, she co-developed one of the first reduced instruction set computer (RISC) processors, the Acorn RISC Machine. Her innovations are used in thousands of devices, such as smartphones, tablets, gaming consoles, and broadband routers.

Dr. Wilson studied mathematics and computer science at Selwyn College, Cambridge University, and on summer vacation, designed a microcomputer used to control feed for cows. She was recruited to Acorn Computers while studying computer science at Cambridge University. While working at Acorn, along with a colleague, she designed and implemented a prototype of the BBC Microcomputer, and was instrumental in developing the Acorn RISC Machine (ARM). Her design was credited as a novel way to increase a given device’s power without compromising the processor’s speed. Her design of the instruction set for the ARM remains one of the most successful central processing unit intellectual property cores of the 1990s and 2000s. The ARM processor type was used in about 95% of smartphones by 2012.

After Acorn, in 1999, she and six other partners founded Element 14 based on a SIMD LIW processor known as FirePath. Their idea was to use FirePath in the ADSL wired broadband market. Element 14 was acquired by Broadcom Inc. in 2000.

Dr. Wilson has openly spoken about her experience as a transgender woman in the tech industry. Her contributions to the field of computing have not gone unnoticed. She has an honorary Doctor of Science from Cambridge University. In 2019, she was appointed Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for her services to computing, a prestigious honor that reflects the impact of her work. She is a fellow of many Societies, such as the Women’s Engineering Society and British Computer Society, and an honorary fellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology, further highlighting her standing in the field.

Author: Jennell C. Bilek