Edson de Castro (September 14, 1938 – September 6, 2024) was an American computer engineer and businessman, perhaps best known for designing the Data General Nova series of computers.

Life and career

De Castro was born in Plainfield, New Jersey, on September 14, 1938. He was founder and CEO of Data General Corporation throughout the 1970s, the 1980s and into the 1990s when he was replaced by Ronald L Skates, a former Price Waterhouse Coopers partner. He also was the project manager in charge of developing the PDP-8 mini computer at Digital Equipment Corporation, before leaving to form Data General Corporation. As CEO of Data General, he appeared in Tracy Kidder's book The Soul of a New Machine. De Castro married Jean DeCastro in Norwich, Connecticut, in 1963. Jean was a school teacher and Edson worked at Digital Equipment. They divorced in 1980. Edson de Castro died on September 6, 2024, at the age of 85.

Books