Gábor Bojár

Bojár Gábor (born Budapest, 1949), is a Hungarian entrepreneur and founder of Graphisoft, an AEC (architecture, engineering, and construction) CAD company. Graphisoft was acquired by German Nemetschek AG in 2007.[1]

Bojár Gábor
Born (1949-03-27) March 27, 1949
Budapest, Hungary
CitizenshipHungarian
Alma materEötvös Loránd University
Known forFounder, Graphisoft

In 1973 he received a degree in physics from Eötvös Loránd University.[2] Bojár started his professional career at the state geophysics institute in the late 1970s. In 1980, when the institute stopped to continue funding for his modelling software, he left and began to work as a programmer abroad, together with his student colleague Ulrich Zimmer.[3]

Graphisoft

Between 1982 and 2007, Bojár served as founder[4][3] and president-CEO of Graphisoft.[5] The company was launched in 1982,[4] when Bojár and Zimmer developed software, assisting the Hungarian ministry of power in solving a major problem with the installation of a soviet nuclear power plant.[3][6] They used the geophysics institute's computers at night, solved the problem and were awarded $30,000 for their software's 300 engineering maps and drawings.[3]

Subsequently, the company re-wrote their software for Apple Lisa, which didn't succeed economically, but kept the company alive throughout the 1980s. Bojár had to smuggle four Macintosh's into Hungary and was supported with cash by Steve Jobs, whom Bojár had first met in 1984.[7][8][9][5][10][11]

During the 1990s, Graphisoft continued to expanded internationally and was eventually acquired by the sectors leading German company Nemetschek AG, in 2007.[12]

Under Bojár's leadership, Graphisoft developed from a small two-person venture into the worldwide market leader in the field of 3D building modeling software, with more than 300 employees and the firm's earnings growing from $30.000 in 1982 to an estimated $33 million in 2018.[13][14]

In 2002, Bojár named Ray Small as new CEO, remaining active as chairman of the company, in charge of Graphisoft's overall strategy.[13]

Graphisoft Park

Graphisoft Park SE is a real-estate enterprise, founded by Bojár.[2]

Aquincum Institute of Technology

Following the sale of Graphisoft in 2007, Bojár founded the Aquincum Institute of Technology (AIT), a school for information technology and entrepreneurship, in the same year.[15] The school's curriculum offers design, entrepreneurship, and foundational courses in computer science. The subjects are combined with advanced applications in computational biology and computer vision for digital film post-production as well as humanities courses related to Hungary's cultural heritage.[14][16][17][18]

Additional memberships

Bojár serves on the board of Masterplast Group.[19]

Awards and recognitions

Bojár has received different national and international awards and prizes. He was named Entrepreneur of the Year by Ernst & Young in 2007 and in 2014, he received the Iván Völgyes Award of AmCham Hungary.[20][21]

Bojár was awarded the Order of Merit of the Republic of Hungary.[2]

References
  1. "About Graphisoft". Nemetschek AG. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  2. "Gábor Bojár" (PDF). BDA DIE ARBEITGEBER. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  3. "Micro Capitalism: Eastern Europe's Computer Future". Harvard Business Review. January–February 1991. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  4. "European Institute of Innovation and Technology: Commission appoints 12 new board members". European Commission. 24 July 2012. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  5. "Steve Jobs: An icon struck in bronze". The Globe and Mail. 30 April 2018. Retrieved 14 March 2019.
  6. "'High Performance': The Ultimate BIM Feature". Architosh. 26 March 2016. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  7. "11 crazy off-the-wall tributes to Steve Jobs — from tattoos to edible statues". BUSINESS INSIDER. 15 July 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  8. "Four phases of industrial revolution: Phase three". NBS. 10 January 2018. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  9. "Apple's Steve Jobs immortalized in bronze by Hungarian firm". NATIONAL POST. 21 December 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  10. "Steve Jobs statue unveiled in Hungary science park". Global Public Square. 22 December 2011. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  11. "Where You Don't Meet Tourists in Budapest". WE LOVE BUDAPEST. 27 August 2013. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  12. "Graphisoft in China". GRAPHISOFT. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  13. "Ray Small Named CEO Of Graphisoft NV". GRAPHISOFT. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  14. "Former EIT Governing Board members". European Institute of Innovation & Technology. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  15. "Overview". AIT-Budapest. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  16. "2nd Central and Eastern European ICT Cluster Conference". ICT Cluster. April 2009. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  17. "Aquincum Institute of Technology" (PDF). PRINCETON UNIVERSITY. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  18. "AIT - Budapest". GO OVERSEAS. 18 January 2014. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  19. "Masterplast Group". MASTERPLAST GRPOUP INTERNATIONAL. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  20. "Iván Völgyes: An Intercultural Interpreter". GE Reports CEE. 8 January 2015. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
  21. "Letter from the founder". AIT-BUDAPEST. Retrieved 15 March 2019.
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