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Barry Lam (; born 24 April 1949) is a Taiwanese
billionaire A billionaire is a person with a net worth of at least 1,000,000,000, one billion units of a given currency, usually of a major currency such as the United States dollar, euro, or pound sterling. It is a sub-category of the concept of the ultr ...
businessman, and the founder and chairman of
Quanta Computer Quanta Computer Incorporated () () is a Taiwan-based contracted manufacturer of electronic hardware. Quanta's business extends to enterprise network systems, home entertainment, mobile communication, automotive electronics, and digital home ma ...
.Quanta Computer
Quantatw.com.
He is also a patron of the arts and a philanthropist in the area of culture and education.http://www.gio.gov.tw/taiwan-website/5-gp/yearbook/who_1b_l2o.html On 25 May 2021, the '' Bloomberg Billionaires Index'' estimated his net worth at $5.98 billion.


Life and career

Barry Lam was born in
Shanghai Shanghai, Shanghainese: , Standard Chinese pronunciation: is a direct-administered municipality and the most populous urban area in China. The city is located on the Chinese shoreline on the southern estuary of the Yangtze River, with the ...
and raised in
Hong Kong Hong Kong)., Legally Hong Kong, China in international treaties and organizations. is a special administrative region of China. With 7.5 million residents in a territory, Hong Kong is the fourth most densely populated region in the wor ...
. His father was an accountant for the Hong Kong Club. He studied engineering in Taiwan, graduating from
National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; zh, t=國立臺灣大學, poj=Kok-li̍p Tâi-oân Tāi-ha̍k, p=, s=) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in 1928 during Taiwan under J ...
with bachelor's and master's degrees in electrical engineering. In 1973, he and some former classmates founded ,Barry Lam, Founder, Quanta Computer, Taiwan (int'l edition)
''Bloomberg BusinessWeek''. (14 June 1999).
a manufacturer of handheld calculators. As president of the company he built it into the largest contract manufacturer of calculators. In the late 1980s, he became convinced that notebook computers would be the next big product. He left Kinpo and founded
Quanta Computer Quanta Computer Incorporated () () is a Taiwan-based contracted manufacturer of electronic hardware. Quanta's business extends to enterprise network systems, home entertainment, mobile communication, automotive electronics, and digital home ma ...
in 1988. He set up Quanta Computer with the help of a colleague, C. C. Leung, with capital of less than US$900,000. It had a turnover of NT$777 billion in 2007, US$23.7 billion.CommonWealth Magazine
English.cw.com.tw.
In 2006, ''
Fortune Magazine ''Fortune'' (stylized in all caps) is an American global business magazine headquartered in New York City. It is published by Fortune Media Group Holdings, a global business media company. The publication was founded by Henry Luce in 1929. T ...
'' included Quanta in the
Fortune Global 500 The ''Fortune'' Global 500, also known as Global 500, is an annual ranking of the top 500 corporations worldwide as measured by revenue. The list is compiled and published annually by '' Fortune'' magazine. Methodology Until 1989, it listed o ...
Companies, and in 2007, ''Forbes'' placed Quanta 15th in its ranking of the world's most admired computer companies, the highest of a Taiwanese company. Quanta designs and manufactures for clients such as
Apple Inc. Apple Inc. is an American multinational corporation and technology company headquartered in Cupertino, California, in Silicon Valley. It is best known for its consumer electronics, software, and services. Founded in 1976 as Apple Comput ...
,
Compaq Compaq Computer Corporation was an American information technology, information technology company founded in 1982 that developed, sold, and supported computers and related products and services. Compaq produced some of the first IBM PC compati ...
,
Dell Dell Inc. is an American technology company that develops, sells, repairs, and supports personal computers (PCs), Server (computing), servers, data storage devices, network switches, software, computer peripherals including printers and webcam ...
, Gateway, BlackBerry Ltd.,
Hewlett-Packard The Hewlett-Packard Company, commonly shortened to Hewlett-Packard ( ) or HP, was an American multinational information technology company. It was founded by Bill Hewlett and David Packard in 1939 in a one-car garage in Palo Alto, California ...
,
Alienware Alienware Corporation is an American computer hardware subsidiary brand, but not of Dell. Their product range is dedicated to gaming computers and accessories and can be identified by their Extraterrestrial life, alien-themed designs. Alienware ...
,
Cisco Systems Cisco Systems, Inc. (using the trademark Cisco) is an American multinational corporation, multinational digital communications technology conglomerate (company), conglomerate corporation headquartered in San Jose, California. Cisco develops, m ...
, Fujitsu, Gericom,
Lenovo Lenovo Group Limited, trading as Lenovo ( , zh, c=联想, p=Liánxiǎng), is a Chinese multinational technology company specializing in designing, manufacturing, and marketing consumer electronics, personal computers, software, servers, conv ...
, LG, Maxdata, MPC,
Sharp Corporation is a Japanese electronics company. It is headquartered in Sakai, Osaka, and was founded by Tokuji Hayakawa in 1912 in Honjo, Tokyo, and established as the Hayakawa Metal Works Institute in Abeno-ku, Osaka, in 1924. Since 2016, it is majority o ...
,
Siemens Siemens AG ( ) is a German multinational technology conglomerate. It is focused on industrial automation, building automation, rail transport and health technology. Siemens is the largest engineering company in Europe, and holds the positi ...
,
Sony is a Japanese multinational conglomerate (company), conglomerate headquartered at Sony City in Minato, Tokyo, Japan. The Sony Group encompasses various businesses, including Sony Corporation (electronics), Sony Semiconductor Solutions (i ...
,
Sun Microsystems Sun Microsystems, Inc., often known as Sun for short, was an American technology company that existed from 1982 to 2010 which developed and sold computers, computer components, software, and information technology services. Sun contributed sig ...
, and
Toshiba is a Japanese multinational electronics company headquartered in Minato, Tokyo. Its diversified products and services include power, industrial and social infrastructure systems, elevators and escalators, electronic components, semiconductors ...
. It is the largest manufacturer of PC notebooks worldwide and has diversified into servers, storage, and liquid-crystal display terminals.Quanta Computer
. Quantatw.com.


Quanta

Lam established the Quanta Research and Development Center at its headquarters in Taiwan. The center works on many collaborative projects with major institutions such as
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...
,
National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; zh, t=國立臺灣大學, poj=Kok-li̍p Tâi-oân Tāi-ha̍k, p=, s=) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in 1928 during Taiwan under J ...
and
Academia Sinica Academia Sinica (AS, ; zh, t=中央研究院) is the national academy of the Taiwan, Republic of China. It is headquartered in Nangang District, Taipei, Nangang, Taipei. Founded in Nanjing, the academy supports research activities in mathemat ...
on producing next generation products.


MIT Project T-Party

In 2005, Lam and Quanta joined forces with
MIT The Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) is a private research university in Cambridge, Massachusetts, United States. Established in 1861, MIT has played a significant role in the development of many areas of modern technology and sc ...
on Project T-Party, (0M project sets sights on future of computing , MIT News Office
Web.mit.edu (13 April 2005).
a five-year initiative to create the next generation of platforms for computing and communication. The project aims to create new interfaces and explore new ways of managing and accessing information.


One Laptop per Child

Lam decided that Quanta would be the original design manufacturer (ODM) for the
OLPC XO-1 The OLPC XO (formerly known as $100 Laptop, Children's Machine, 2B1) is a low cost laptop computer intended to be distributed to children in developing countries around the world, to provide them with access to knowledge, and opportunities to " ...
by the One Laptop per Child project. Quanta took orders for one million laptops as of 2007-02-15. The OLPC project was also part of Quanta's Blue Ocean Strategy, entering new market segments which are uncontested in terms of competition.


Arts patronage and philanthropy

Lam is one of the foremost patron of the arts in Taiwan. He has a personal collection of more than 1,000 works of art and in particular, he collects Chinese paintings and calligraphy. One of his favourite painters is Zhang Daqian, and he has more than 250 of his works. He is a sponsor of the Zhang Daqian Museum, which is housed in the artist's former home. He has incorporated a Museum of Art and Technology in the headquarters of Quanta in Taiwan, and he displays his personal art collection there. He is chairman of the Advisory Committee of the
National Palace Museum The National Palace Museum, also known as Taipei Palace Museum, is a national museum headquartered in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in Beijing in 1925, the museum was re-established in Shilin District, Shilin, Taipei, in 1965, later expanded with a S ...
, Taipei, one of the leading museums worldwide. It has the largest collection of Chinese artefacts in the world. He is chairman of the Contemporary Art Foundation which manages the MoCA Taipei. He is director of the Cloud Gate Dance Theater group, a Taiwanese modern dance group, which has performed in the Guggenheim Museum in New York, and toured Europe extensively. He is founder and chairman of the Quanta Cultural and Educational foundation, which promotes culture, art and education in Taiwan. It promotes educational exhibitions and programs for schools free of charge. It has held more than 20 exhibitions in 291 schools, with more than 1.3 million young people participating in its educational activities. The foundation has received the Wen Hsin Golden Award from the Council for Cultural Affairs, Taiwan, for its outstanding promotion of social education many times.Quanta Computer
Quantatw.com.
In November 2002, Barry Lam announced that he would fund a new College of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science at his alma mater
National Taiwan University National Taiwan University (NTU; zh, t=國立臺灣大學, poj=Kok-li̍p Tâi-oân Tāi-ha̍k, p=, s=) is a National university, national Public university, public research university in Taipei, Taiwan. Founded in 1928 during Taiwan under J ...
. It opened in July 2004, and is known as the Barry Lam Hall. It houses the Barry Lam Art Gallery in its basement. He is chairman of the Dwen An Social Welfare Foundation, a charitable organisation funded by leading business people in Taiwan. Barry Lam served as Chairman of the China Exploration & Research Society (cers.org.hk) from 2011 to 2018 for eight years. CERS is a preeminent non-profit organization headquartered in Hong Kong, with a focus on remote East Asia and Southeast Asia, in exploration, research, conservation to nature and culture, and education. Lam was a Director since 2000.


Honors

*2019 First Class Science and Technology Profession Medal, Ministry of Science and Technology *2012 Honorary Doctorate, National Tsing Hua University *2007 Honorary Doctorate, National Taiwan University *2005 Honorary Degree: Doctor of Technology, The Hong Kong Polytechnic University *2006 'Second Class Bright Star Medal' Taiwan Government *2006 and 2002 Wen Hsin Silver Award for outstanding promotion of social education, Council of Cultural Affairs, Taiwan *2005 Entrepreneur of the Year, Ernst and Young *2002 One of '25 Managers of the Year', Business Week Magazine *2001 and 1999 One of 'The Stars of Asia', Business Week MagazineThe Stars of Asia (int'l edition)
. ''Bloomberg BusinessWeek''. (14 June 1999).


References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Lam, Barry Collectors of Asian art Hong Kong emigrants to Taiwan National Taiwan University alumni 20th-century Taiwanese businesspeople 1949 births Living people Taiwanese billionaires Businesspeople from Shanghai Taiwanese chief executives Quanta Computer Taiwanese people from Shanghai 21st-century Taiwanese businesspeople