Oracle Corporation was founded as Software Development Laboratories in 1977 by Larry Ellison, Bob Miner, and Ed Oates.
The founders developed database software inspired by a research paper about relational database systems written by IBM researcher Edgar F. Codd. Their early product was designed to be compatible with IBM’s proposed System R database concepts, although Oracle’s system reached the market before IBM’s commercial version.
The company changed its name to Relational Software, Inc. in 1979 and adopted the name Oracle Systems Corporation in 1982. Its flagship Oracle Database became one of the most influential commercial relational database systems, helping establish database software as a major enterprise-technology business.
A common mix-up is calling the original company “Oracle” from the beginning. Oracle was the product name and later the corporate name; the startup itself began as Software Development Laboratories.