History of Ada Lovelace Day

Our Past

Ada Lovelace Day was launched in 2009 with a simple pledge on British civil action site, Pledgebank. Nearly 2,000 people signed up to blog about a woman in technology whom they admired on 24 March. The day was an astounding success, with contributors writing blog posts, newspaper columns and even a webcomic, Sydney Padua’s Thrilling Adventures of Lovelace and Babbage. The media covered Ada Lovelace Day with enthusiasm, including coverage from The Guardian, The Telegraph, the BBC and Computer Weekly amongst others.

In 2010, we had involvement from over 2,000 people who wrote about the women they admire. We held our first official event, with a keynote speech from technology journalist Maggie Philbin, most famous for her work on Tomorrow’s World.

And our future

Ada Lovelace Day this year will be held on 16 October. Over the coming year, FindingAda.com will develop into a resource for women in science, technology, engineering and maths, as well as for parents, teachers and lecturers who care about encouraging girls and young women to enter the STEM disciplines. Please do stay with us as we evolve!