Corning Inc.
| File:Corning Inc logo.svg Logo of Corning Incorporated | |
| Company type | Public |
|---|---|
| Industry | Glass, ceramics, optical components, telecommunications, life sciences |
| Predecessor | Bay State Glass Co., Corning Glass Works |
| Founded | January 1, 1851 in Somerville, Massachusetts, United States |
| Founder | Amory Houghton |
| Headquarters | Corning, New York , United States |
Area served | Worldwide |
Key people | Wendell P. Weeks (Chairman and CEO), Lawrence D. McRae (Vice Chairman) |
| Products | Glass, ceramics, optical fiber and cables, Gorilla Glass, laboratory glassware, emission control components |
| Revenue | $13.1 billion (2024) |
| $1.14 billion (2024) | |
Number of employees | 56,300 (2024) |
| Website | www |
Corning Incorporated is a U.S.-based multinational technology firm that focuses on producing glass, ceramics, and cutting-edge optical components for industrial and scientific uses. Established in 1851 by Amory Houghton under the name Bay State Glass Co., it operated as Corning Glass Works until 1989. In 1998, Corning divested its consumer product segment—including brands such as CorningWare, Visions cookware, Corelle dinnerware, and Pyrex bakeware—by selling its Corning Consumer Products Company division to Borden.
By 2014, Corning was structured into five primary business units: display technologies, environmental technologies, life sciences, optical communications, and specialty materials. The company also engages in joint ventures like Dow Corning and Pittsburgh Corning and completed the spin-offs of Quest Diagnostics and Covance (now Fortrea) in 1997. Since 2007, Corning has been a principal supplier to Apple Inc., collaborating on the development of Gorilla Glass—a robust material widely adopted by smartphone manufacturers. It stands among the largest global producers of glass and has been honored four times with the National Medal of Technology and Innovation for its pioneering work.
Corning’s worldwide headquarters remain situated in Corning, New York, where it established one of the earliest industrial research laboratories in 1908. The company continues to grow its research and development centers alongside operations focused on catalytic converters and diesel engine filtration systems. Demonstrating a commitment to regional growth, Corning has confirmed plans to keep its headquarters within upstate New York.
Leadership includes Chairman and CEO Wendell P. Weeks and Vice Chairman Lawrence D. McRae. In 2024, Corning reported revenues totaling $13.1 billion with an operating income of $1.14 billion and employed roughly 56,300 individuals globally. Its business segments encompass display technologies, telecommunications, environmental technologies, specialty materials, and life sciences.
History
Corning Glass Works was established in 1851 by Amory Houghton in Somerville, Massachusetts, initially named Bay State Glass Co. The company later relocated to Williamsburg, Brooklyn, operating as Brooklyn Flint Glass Works before settling in Corning, New York, in 1868 under the leadership of Amory Houghton Jr., the founder’s son.
In 1915, Corning introduced Pyrex—the first consumer kitchenware made from heat-resistant glass. Between 1934 and 1936, the company produced the low-expansion borosilicate glass mirror for Caltech’s Palomar Observatory telescope, representing a significant advancement in optical glass fabrication.
In 1935, Corning joined forces with Owens-Illinois to create Owens Corning, which became an independent entity by 1938. Following World War II, the company focused heavily on innovation driven by research and disruptive technologies.
In 1962, Corning developed Chemcor—a strengthened automotive windshield that was thinner and lighter than conventional models and designed to shatter into small granules to reduce injury risk. This product was manufactured through ion exchange and fusion techniques at its Christiansburg, Virginia plant. Chemcor was introduced on select Plymouth and Dodge vehicles in 1968 and featured on the 1970 AMC Javelins and AMXs. Despite its technical advantages, limited regulatory requirements hindered widespread adoption, leading to project discontinuation in 1971. Nevertheless, the manufacturing technology later became foundational for Corning’s lucrative LCD glass segment.
A major milestone came in 1970 when Corning scientists created low-loss optical fiber using doped silica glass—paving the way for practical fiber optic telecommunications. This breakthrough positioned the company as a worldwide leader in optical fiber production.
The Z Glass initiative launched in 1977 aimed at television picture tubes initially generated substantial losses but saw partial recovery by 1978; it is now studied as a Harvard Business School case illustrating innovation management challenges.
In 1998, Corning divested its kitchenware business as Corelle Brands to concentrate exclusively on industrial markets.
During the late 1990s dot-com surge, Corning expanded its fiber operations dramatically by acquiring telecommunications firm Oak Industries for $1.8 billion and establishing new manufacturing facilities. The company also invested heavily in photonics technology aiming to dominate fiber-optic systems but did not fully realize this potential. The subsequent collapse of the dot-com bubble caused stock prices to plummet to $1 per share. By 2007, however, Corning had recorded five consecutive years of financial improvement.
Technologies
Corning achieved a significant milestone when Apple chose it to create robust display glass for the iPhone, which led to the extensive use of its Gorilla Glass by numerous device manufacturers. In 2011, Corning broadened its production capabilities by establishing a Gen 10 facility within Sharp Corporation’s complex located in Sakai, Osaka, Japan, specializing in the manufacture of LCD glass substrates free from heavy metals. The company holds a prominent position as a supplier of glass used in liquid crystal displays.
The company produces optical fiber and cables at its plants in Wilmington and Concord, North Carolina, catering to the communications sector. Additionally, Corning is a key manufacturer of ceramic emission control components for gasoline-powered engines and is actively investing in ceramic technologies for diesel engines to comply with increasingly stringent global emission regulations.
In 2007, Corning launched the ClearCurve optical fiber, which incorporates nanostructure technology to enhance bending performance in fiber-to-the-x (FTTX) network installations.
Originating from the 1960s Chemcor initiative, Gorilla Glass is an alkali-aluminosilicate sheet glass known for its high strength, scratch resistance, and durability, making it ideal for touchscreen devices. It gained notable prominence as the cover glass for the original iPhone introduced in 2007.
On October 25, 2011, Corning unveiled Lotus Glass, a high-performance and environmentally friendly glass tailored for use in OLED and LCD display technologies.
Approximately 10% of Corning’s revenue is dedicated to research and development activities. This includes a $300 million investment to expand its Sullivan Park research campus near its corporate headquarters in Corning, New York.
The company also manufactures ultra-pure fused silica utilized in microlithography equipment, low-expansion glass materials applied in reflective mirror substrates and Space Shuttle windows, as well as Steuben art glass. Although traditional molten glass production has declined industry-wide, Corning continues to maintain extensive capacity to deliver a diverse range of bulk and finished glass products.
Corning’s research portfolio extends into areas such as green laser technology, mercury reduction methods, microreactor systems, photovoltaic materials, and silicon-on-glass innovations. Its Life Sciences division supports scientific endeavors by providing products like stem-cell culture media.
In September 2019, Apple announced an additional $250 million investment in Corning aimed at advancing the development and manufacturing of glass components for Apple devices including the iPhone, Watch, and iPad; this followed a prior $200 million funding round made in 2017.
In November 2024, the European Commission initiated an antitrust inquiry into Corning concerning exclusive supply agreements with mobile phone manufacturers and raw glass processors that could potentially limit competition within the specialty glass market.
Other activities
Corning employs roughly 61,200 individuals worldwide and reported sales totaling $14.08 billion in 2021. The company has consistently appeared among the largest firms on the Fortune 500 list, achieving a rank of No. 297 in 2015.
Although publicly traded, leadership influence remained with the Houghton family—descendants of the company’s founder—with James R. Houghton serving as chairman from 2001 until 2007; family ownership has since decreased to about 2%. Wendell Weeks, who joined Corning in 1983, held the roles of chairman, CEO, and president as of March 2013.
Over its more than 160-year history, Corning pioneered rapid manufacturing techniques for light bulbs—producing glass components for Thomas Edison’s bulbs—and supplied General Electric following Edison General Electric's merger in 1892. The firm introduced numerous innovative glass products including Vycor (a high-temperature resistant glass), Pyrex laboratory glassware, CorningWare cookware, Visions transparent cookware, Pyroceram glass-ceramics, and Corelle dinnerware. Corning also produced windows used on U.S. crewed space vehicles and provided the primary mirror blank for the Hubble Space Telescope.
In 1982, Corning launched Chameleon® and Serengeti® sunglasses featuring proprietary photochromic lenses and Spectral Control® technology.
In July 2008, after sustaining over $30 million in losses over five years, Steuben Glass Works was sold by Corning to Schottenstein Stores Corporation.
Corning expanded its telecommunications offerings through strategic acquisitions: MobileAccess Networks (2011), an Israeli firm specializing in distributed antenna systems for large venues; SpiderCloud Wireless (2017); and nearly all assets of 3M's Communication Markets Division (2017–2018) at an approximate cost of $900 million. These acquisitions bolstered Corning's optical communications unit and enhanced its position within wireless infrastructure markets.
Board of directors
- Donald W. Blair: former Executive Vice President and Chief Financial Officer at NIKE, Inc.
- Leslie A. Brun: CEO and chairman of Sarr Group
- Richard T. Clark: former chairman, president, and CEO of Merck & Co., Inc.
- Pamela J. Craig: former Chief Financial Officer of Accenture plc.
- Robert F. Cummings, Jr.: former vice chairman in investment banking at JPMorgan Chase & Co.
- Roger W. Ferguson Jr.: Distinguished Fellow for International Economics at the Council on Foreign Relations
- Thomas D. French: senior partner emeritus at McKinsey & Company
- Deborah A. Henretta: former group president overseeing global e-business at Procter & Gamble
- Daniel P. Huttenlocher: dean at Massachusetts Institute of Technology
- Kurt M. Landgraf: retired president and CEO of Educational Testing Service
- Kevin Martin: Vice President of U.S. public policy at Meta Platforms, Inc.
- Deborah D. Rieman: former executive chairman of MetaMarkets Group
- Hansel E. Tookes II: retired chairman and CEO of Raytheon Aircraft Company
- Wendell P. Weeks: chairman, president, and CEO of Corning Incorporated
- Mark S. Wrighton: professor emeritus of chemistry and chancellor emeritus at Washington University in St. Louis
See also
- Corelle Brands LLC, a previous subsidiary of Corning Consumer Products divested to Borden in 1998; later merged with Instant Brands in 2019
- Corning Museum of Glass
- Corning, NY
- Houghton family
- Macor, a machinable glass-ceramic material developed by Corning
- Overflow downdraw method, Corning’s technology for manufacturing flat panel displays
Further reading
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