The W In WIFI Stands for Woman

Hedy Lamarr: More Than Just a Pretty Face

Hedy Lamarr in The Heavenly Body, 1944

When we think about WiFi, we often take for granted the invisible waves that connect our devices to the world, but did you know that a Hollywood actress played a crucial role in developing the technology that paved the way for WiFi? This is the story of Hedy Lamarr, the woman behind the 'W' in WiFi.

Hedy Lamarr, born in 1914 in Vienna, Austria, was known for her stunning beauty and successful acting career. However, her contributions to technology have often been overlooked. During World War II, Lamarr and composer George Antheil developed a revolutionary frequency-hopping spread spectrum technology to use against the Nazis; this invention was designed to guide torpedoes in a way that was resistant to detection or jamming. Even if it wasn't directly implemented during the war, this technology later became the foundation for modern wireless communication systems, including WiFi, Bluetooth and GPS. Lamarr's invention was ahead of its time since it wasn't until the 1960s that engineers at Sylvania Electronic Systems Division recognized the importance of her work; her frequency-hopping idea was incorporated into a secure military communications system.

In 1997, she was honored with the Electronic Frontier Foundation Pioneer Award. Posthumously, she was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame in 2014.

The top-secret patent, 1942

Hedy Lamarr's story serves as a powerful reminder of women's, often unacknowledged, contributions to technology; her work laid the groundwork for the wireless world we live in today, making her, in essence, the mother of WiFi.

Lamarr once said, "The world isn't getting any easier. With all these new inventions, I believe that people are hurried more and pushed more... The hurried way is not the right way; you need time for everything: time to work, time to play, time to rest." Her words remind us to appreciate the technology that connects us, while also recognizing the need to catch a break.

The next time you connect to a WiFi network, remember Hedy Lamarr; her story is a testament to the power of innovation and the importance of recognizing diverse contributions in the field of technology. The 'W' in WiFi may not officially stand for 'woman', but in spirit, it certainly does.