Hewlett-Packard (HP) has recently been in the news due to the criminal trial involving the $11 billion acquisition of Autonomy, a UK software company, by HP in 2011. The trial has seen prosecutors referring to the founder of Autonomy, Mike Lynch, as 'Dr. Lynch,' while the defense has used the more informal 'Mike.'
HP, founded in 1939 by Bill Hewlett and Dave Packard in a Palo Alto garage, grew to become a leading American multinational information technology company. HP developed and provided a wide range of hardware and software products, including computers, printers, and enterprise services. The company's acquisition of Autonomy was intended to bolster its software offerings but later led to allegations of financial impropriety, resulting in a legal battle between HP and Autonomy's former executives.