Founder
FORE Systems, Inc.
Distinguished Service Professor
Computer Science Department
Carnegie Mellon University
Eric Cooper received a B.A. magna cum laude in mathematics from Harvard University in 1980 and a Ph.D. in computer science from the University of California at Berkeley in 1985.
From 1985 to 1991, he was a member of the computer science faculty at Carnegie Mellon University, where he conducted research in computer networks, operating systems, and programming languages.
Dr. Cooper co-founded FORE Systems in 1990, serving as CEO until 1998 and as Chairman until 1999. During his tenure, the company grew from a pioneering developer of ATM local-area networks to a leading supplier of networks for enterprises and service providers. Dr. Cooper took FORE public in 1994, acquired eight private companies and one public company over the next five years, and sold the company in 1999 to Marconi for $4.5 billion in cash. In its final year as an independent company, FORE Systems employed 2,000 people worldwide, generated $700 million in revenue, and earned $50 million in net income.
In 1999, Dr. Cooper was appointed Distinguished Service Professor of Computer Science at Carnegie Mellon University.
Dr. Cooper was a member of the Board of Trustees of Carnegie Mellon University from 1996 to 2002. He has served as a Director of several technology companies, both public and private.