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In 2005, OLPC’s $100 laptop was going to change the world — then it all went wrong

In the early 2000s, the concept of “One Laptop Per Child” (OLPC) captured the imagination of the world. The ambitious project aimed to provide every child in the world with a low-cost, rugged, and connected laptop, revolutionizing education and bridging the digital divide. It didn't happen.

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  • Wrote a paper for one of my finals in college on the efficacy of these. Havent thought of the project for probably 15+ years.

    It really was a fantastic idea, always hoped it would catch on but alas, the Chromebook took over in education spaces thanks to subsidies from Google for the data collection.

    • It really was a fantastic idea, always hoped it would catch on but alas, the Chromebook took over in education spaces thanks to subsidies from Google for the data collection.

      Yep. I do wish they would revisit the whole "water-resistant, rubber/plastic tought as a Tonka truck, drop-resistant, hand crank to charge-up" ideas though!

17 comments