Clive Sinclair

Sir Clive Sinclair (30 July 1940 to 16 September 2021) was an English entrepreneur and inventor who became a pioneer of the British home computer industry. After working as an assistant editor of Instrument Practice, he founded Sinclair Radionics in 1961 and in 1972 produced the Sinclair Executive, the first slimline electronic pocket calculator. In 1980 he moved into home computers with Sinclair Research, whose ZX80 was the first mass market home computer in the United Kingdom priced under 100 pounds, followed by the ZX81, the ZX Spectrum and the Sinclair QL. Sinclair Research is widely recognised for its importance in the early days of the British and European home computer industry and for helping to give rise to the British video game industry. He also had commercial failures, notably the C5 electric vehicle, and sold most of his companies by 1986. He was knighted in 1983 for his contributions to the personal computer industry.