The One Laptop Per Child Association (OLPC) is a U.S. non-profit organization set up to oversee the creation of an affordable educational device for use in the developing world. Their mission is to create educational opportunities for the world's poorest children by providing each child with a rugged, low-cost, low-power, connected laptop with content and software designed for collaborative, joyful, self-empowered learning. Founded in 2005, the organization is led by chairman Nicholas Negroponte and is funded by member organizations, including AMD, Brightstar Corporation, eBay, Google, Marvell, News Corporation, SES, Nortel Networks, and Red Hat. Each company has donated two million dollars.
The XO is a potent learning tool designed and built especially for children in developing countries, living in some of the most remote environments. It’s about the size of a small textbook. It has built-in wireless and a unique screen that is readable under direct sunlight for children who go to school outdoors. It’s extremely durable, brilliantly functional, energy-efficient, and fun. The project originally aimed for a price of 100 US dollars, hence its name «$100 Laptop». Its current focus is on the development, construction and deployment of the XO-1 laptop.
The goal of the foundation is to provide children around the world with new opportunities to explore, experiment, and express themselves. To that end, OLPC is designing a laptop, educational software, manufacturing base, and distribution system to provide children outside of the first-world with otherwise unavailable technological learning opportunities. As its founder states : «It's an education project, not a laptop project».
In October 2007, Uruguay placed an order for 100,000 laptops, making Uruguay the first country to purchase a full order of laptops. The laptop has since been distributed to many countries in the Americas, Africa, Asia and Oceania.
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