Olivetti Elea: Or the Italian missing opportunity!

Adriano Olivetti died in 1960 on a train to Switzerland searching for funding for the Elea (Elaboratore Elettronico Aritmetico) he refused an economic offer from the General Electric, with the Background of the USA government and to empower the IBM days before. He was of the idea to go forward as only owner of this technologic project. The first real computer, using just solid elements, no valves, and all made in Italy. Olivetti had in Mario Tchou, a Chinese engineer raised in Italy, his trust man and head project manager for ELEA.

Tchou died in a traffic accident in 1961, one year after Adriano, and ELEA went to IBM and the history now is known. Italy missed the chance to be the light of Europe, with the unique Italian way of being friends of all the world without a political diplomatic crisis.