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Andy Hopper
Photo: Andy Hopper, CC BY-SA 3.0, via Wikimedia Commons14

Andy Hopper

British computer scientist (born 1953)

Sir Andrew Hopper (born 9 May 1953) is a British-Polish computer technologist and entrepreneur. He is a founding partner at Cambridge AI Venture Partners and since 2025 has been chairman of CommonAI Community Interest Company and CommonAI Compute Ltd.2

From Wikipedia’s article on Andy Hopper (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Born May 9, 1953.1

About

He is also commissioner of the Royal Commission for the Exhibition of 1851, former treasurer and vice-president of the Royal Society, professor emeritus of computer technology at the University of Cambridge, an honorary fellow of Trinity Hall, Cambridge and Corpus Christi College, Cambridge.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andy Hopper, shared under CC BY-SA 4.0.2

Companies

Early life and education

  • Date not recordedUniversity of Cambridge3
  • Date not recordedTrinity Hall3
  • Date not recordedSwansea University3

Hopper was educated at Quintin Kynaston School in London after which he went to study for a Bachelor of Science degree at Swansea University before going to the University of Cambridge Computer Laboratory and Trinity Hall, Cambridge in 1974 for postgraduate work. Hopper was awarded his PhD in 1978 for research into local area computer communications networks supervised by David Wheeler.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andy Hopper (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Career

Occupation: entrepreneur, university teacher, computer scientist, businessperson.7

  • Since 2019Company director, lowRISC6
  • Date not recordedFounded Acorn Computers4
  • Date not recordedFounded Olivetti Research Laboratory5

Hopper's PhD, completed in 1977 was in the field of communications networks, and he worked with Maurice Wilkes on the creation of the Cambridge Ring and its successors.

Hopper's interests include computer networks, multimedia systems, Virtual Network Computing, sentient computing and ubiquitous data. His most cited paper describes the indoor location system called the Active Badge. He has contributed to a discussion of the privacy challenges relating to surveillance. He is a proponent of Digital Commons industrial and societal infrastructure.

After more than 20 years at Cambridge University Computer Laboratory, Hopper was elected Chair of Communications Engineering at Cambridge University Engineering Department in 1997. He returned to the Computer Laboratory as Professor of Computer Technology and Head of department in 2004.

Hopper's research under the title Computing for the Future of the Planet examines the uses of computers, data and AI for assuring the sustainability of the planet.

Hopper has supervised approximately fifty PhD students. An annual PhD studentship has been named after him.

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Commercial activities

In 1978, Hopper co-founded Orbis Ltd to develop networking technologies. He worked with Hermann Hauser and Chris Curry, founders of Acorn Computers Ltd. Orbis became a division of Acorn in 1979 and continued to work with the Cambridge Ring. While at Acorn, Hopper contributed to design some of the chips for the BBC Micro and helped conceive the project which led to the design of the ARM microprocessor. When Acorn was acquired by Olivetti in 1985, Hauser became vice-president for research at Olivetti, in which role he co-founded the Olivetti Research Laboratory in 1986 with Hopper; Hopper became its managing director.

In 1985, after leaving Acorn, Hopper co-founded Qudos, a company producing CAD software and doing chip prototyping. He remained a director until 1989.

In 1993, Hopper set up Advanced Telecommunication Modules Ltd with Hermann Hauser. This company went public on the NASDAQ as Virata in 1999. The company was acquired by Conexant Systems on 1 March 2004.

In 1995, Hopper co-founded Telemedia Systems, now called IPV, and was its chairman until 2003.

In 1997, Hopper co-founded Adaptive Broadband Ltd (ABL) to further develop the 'Wireless ATM' project started at ORL in the early 90s. ABL was bought by California Microwave, Inc in 1998.

In January 2000, Hopper co-founded Cambridge Broadband which was to develop broadband fixed wireless equipment; he was non-executive chairman from 2000 – 2005.

In 2002 Hopper was involved in the founding of Ubisense Ltd to further develop the location technologies and sentient computing concepts that grew out of the ORL Active Badge system. Hopper became a director in 2003 and was chairman between 2006 and 2015 during which the company made its initial public offering (IPO) in June 2011.

In 2002, Hopper co-founded RealVNC and served as chairman until the company was sold in 2021.

In 2002, Hopper co-founded Level 5 Networks and was a director until 2008, just after it merged with Solarflare.

From 2005 until 2009, Hopper was chairman of Adventiq, a joint venture between Adder and RealVNC, developing a VNC-based system-on-a-chip.

In 2013 Hopper co-founded TxtEz, a company looking to commoditise B2C communication in Africa.

Between 2019 and 2026 he was Chairman of lowRISC Community Interest Company which develops industrial-strength open source hardware.

Hopper was an advisor to Hauser's venture capital firm Amadeus Capital Partners from 2001 until 2005.

He was also an advisor to the Cambridge Gateway Fund from 2001 until 2006.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andy Hopper (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Personal life

  • BornMay 9, 1953, Warsaw8
  • CitizenshipUnited Kingdom9
  • ResidenceLittle Shelford10
  • SpouseAlison Gail Smith11

Hopper married Alison Gail Smith, Professor of Plant Biochemistry at the University of Cambridge, in 1988. They have two children, William and Merrill. He is a qualified pilot with over 6,000 hours logged, including a round the world flight, and his house near Cambridge has an airstrip from which he flies his six-seater Cessna light aircraft.

From Wikipedia’s article on Andy Hopper (this version), CC BY-SA 4.0.

Awards

  • 2017Royal Society Bakerian Medal12
  • 2006Fellow of the Royal Society12
  • 2004Mountbatten Medal12
  • Date not recordedClifford Paterson Lecture12
  • Date not recordedCommander of the Order of the British Empire12
  • Date not recordedFellow of the Institution of Engineering and Technology12
  • Date not recordedFellow of the Royal Academy of Engineering12
  • Date not recordedRoyal Society Bakerian Medal12

Sources

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