The Military.

Robert MacBride,The Automated State(1967):
In looking back over the evolution and development of computer systems, one's attention is repeatedly drawn to the large part that military requirements have played in the process. This is evident not only in a purely technological sense--to the extent that military requirements have tended to dictate the direction of hardware design--but also in the evolution of computer system applications. Again and again, as we trace the growth of computer-based management and analysis techniques, we find direct evidence of, if not a military origin, the military establishment's early support and strong participation,(p.169).