Tomorrow’s Tech Treepowered by Astra

Software & Internet Services · Recorded milestone

Network email

Recorded year1971

Ray Tomlinson sends the first email between computers using the @ sign.

Explore this milestone on the interactive map

Built on

TransistorRecorded · 1947requires
ARPANETRecorded · 1969enables

Led to

Spam emailRecorded · 1978enables
GroupwareRecorded · 1989enables
Preprint serversRecorded · 1991enables
Email in your pocketRecorded · 1999enables
Paid newslettersRecorded · 2017enables

Sources & evidence

Additional source

Dataset updated 2026-10-18. This individual record has not been separately re-reviewed.