145 Broadway, Cambridge

If you started using the web in the 1990s, you may remember the “World Wide Wait,” the long loading times that plagued popular websites. Akamai, a spinout from MIT’s Lab for Computer Science and mathematics department, solved the network congestion problem by developing algorithms for distributed computing and building its own network of edge servers that could store copies of high-demand content closer to users. Even today, Akamai sends streaming video and other content to billions of people each day—and in its iconic new building at 145 Broadway, it remains one of Kendall Square’s anchor technology companies.

Guest speakers

Tom Leighton, Co-founder and CEO, Akamai

Julia Austin, Senior Lecturer, Harvard Business School; former VP of Engineering, Akamai