Believe it or not, the generation that is entering the workforce now probably doesn’t remember a time without a smartphone. As we approach the 15-year anniversary of Gorilla Glass, we thought it was a good time to review the history and science of Gorilla Glass and the problems we were solving throughout the last decade and a half.
Why The History Lesson?
Why The History Lesson?
2007

In 2007, Jacqueline lived in a city in the US and commuted to work. At that time, wireless broadband was running its 3rd Generation (3G or mobile internet speed). She listened to music on her MP3 player (look ‘em up) and had a cellular phone that resembled a small plastic box. Roughly 72% of the population in the US owned a “cellphone.” The Internet was running 2000 GB/second (compare that to the 77.5 Exabytes it runs today!). Sometimes, Jacqueline liked to take photos of people around the city that she would later post on her blog. On those days, she would take the time to carry around her “digital camera.” Until one day, something new was introduced….
Do you remember what you were doing in 2007? What technology did you use?
In 2007, Jacqueline lived in a city in the US and commuted to work. At that time, wireless broadband was running its 3rd Generation (3G or mobile internet speed). She listened to music on her MP3 player (look ‘em up) and had a cellular phone that resembled a small plastic box. Roughly 72% of the population in the US owned a “cellphone.” The Internet was running 2000 GB/second (compare that to the 77.5 Exabytes it runs today!). Sometimes, Jacqueline liked to take photos of people around the city that she would later post on her blog. On those days, she would take the time to carry around her “digital camera.” Until one day, something new was introduced….
Do you remember what you were doing in 2007? What technology did you use?

2013
2013
In 2013, Jaqueline lives in a US city and is now the proud owner of a smartphone. She hurriedly throws her phone into her bag as she catches the subway to work. The contents of her bag tumble against the glass on her smartphone which can cause scratches or flaws to be introduced. When a flaw is introduced to glass and it propagates, the glass can break. Fortunately for Jacqueline, she has a phone with Corning® Gorilla® Glass 3.
In January of 2013, Corning Gorilla Glass launched Gorilla Glass 3 at CES.
Gorilla Glass 3 When Compared to Alternative Aluminosilicate Glass:
- Improves scratch-resistance
- Reduces scratch visibility
- Enables improved strength after scratch
What were you doing in 2013? What technology did you remember?



2016

In 2016, Jaqueline has a baby, and she’s looking forward to a trip to visit her family. At this point in time, she’s only been able to show off her baby through a video call on her smartphone. As she prepares to board her flight, her little one grabs for her phone and knocks it out of her hand. This is a typical scenario. Jaqueline always needs her phone, whether it’s for accessing a mobile ticket for her flight, taking photos, checking email, using GPS or countless other things. It’s clear that the smartphone is a necessity.
In 2016, Jaqueline has a baby, and she’s looking forward to a trip to visit her family. At this point in time, she’s only been able to show off her baby through a video call on her smartphone. As she prepares to board her flight, her little one grabs for her phone and knocks it out of her hand. This is a typical scenario. Jaqueline always needs her phone, whether it’s for accessing a mobile ticket for her flight, taking photos, checking email, using GPS or countless other things. It’s clear that the smartphone is a necessity.

By 2016, 80% of the people in the US owned a smartphone. There were 5 million apps available, and the mobile Internet speed was up to 4G. The smartphone was an item that went with people everywhere they went. When you’re constantly pulling an item out and looking at it, you’re inevitably going to drop it which mean that the scientists at Corning® Gorilla® Glass had to create a type of cover glass that was more durable than before. Gorilla® Glass 5 was launched in 2016 and offered smartphones the durability they needed to keep up with consumers constant use of a device. Gorilla Glass 5 allowed flaws to go deeper before the glass would fail in a drop event compared to alternative cover glass
By 2016, 80% of the people in the US owned a smartphone. There were 5 million apps available, and the mobile Internet speed was up to 4G. The smartphone was an item that went with people everywhere they went. When you’re constantly pulling an item out and looking at it, you’re inevitably going to drop it which mean that the scientists at Corning® Gorilla® Glass had to create a type of cover glass that was more durable than before. Gorilla® Glass 5 was launched in 2016 and offered smartphones the durability they needed to keep up with consumers constant use of a device. Gorilla Glass 5 allowed flaws to go deeper before the glass would fail in a drop event compared to alternative cover glass
2018

In 2018, Jacqueline is riding her mountain bike outside. It’s a hot day and the trail she’s riding is challenging. She looks down at her smartwatch to see how far she’s been riding. She easily can see the data on her screen because her watch has Corning Gorilla Glass with DX, a glass composite that helps with sunlight readability.
In July 2018, Corning launched a glass composite called Gorilla Glass with DX and DX+ specifically for wearables. The glass composite minimized surface reflection to enhance sunlight readability. If you weren’t in a bright environment, you could turn down your brightness and save battery life
In 2018, Jacqueline is riding her mountain bike outside. It’s a hot day and the trail she’s riding is challenging. She looks down at her smartwatch to see how far she’s been riding. She easily can see the data on her screen because her watch has Corning Gorilla Glass with DX, a glass composite that helps with sunlight readability.
In July 2018, Corning launched a glass composite called Gorilla Glass with DX and DX+ specifically for wearables. The glass composite minimized surface reflection to enhance sunlight readability. If you weren’t in a bright environment, you could turn down your brightness and save battery life

2020

In 2020, Jaqueline has a preschool age child. The US has gone on lockdown due to a global pandemic and she now finds herself working from home with a rambunctious 4-year-old. She relies heavily on her mobile devices, especially her smartphone, to connect with colleagues and entertain/educate her little one. This scenario leads to her child constantly grabbing and dropping her phone. Sometimes when her child drops the phone it gets scratched. She needs the glass on her mobile device to be tough against drops AND scratches.
In 2020, Jaqueline has a preschool age child. The US has gone on lockdown due to a global pandemic and she now finds herself working from home with a rambunctious 4-year-old. She relies heavily on her mobile devices, especially her smartphone, to connect with colleagues and entertain/educate her little one. This scenario leads to her child constantly grabbing and dropping her phone. Sometimes when her child drops the phone it gets scratched. She needs the glass on her mobile device to be tough against drops AND scratches.

In July of 2020, Corning Gorilla Glass launched Gorilla Glass Victus. The glass innovations that came before it focused on improving either drop or scratch performance. But now, our technologists had come up with a way to improve the glass performance for drop and scratch resistance at the same time. Compared to the previous generation, Corning Gorilla Glass 6, they engineered Corning Gorilla Glass Victus to better survive drops from up to 2M. Additionally, Gorilla Glass Victus has up to 4X better scratch resistance than competitive aluminosilicate from other manufacturers.
In July of 2020, Corning Gorilla Glass launched Gorilla Glass Victus. The glass innovations that came before it focused on improving either drop or scratch performance. But now, our technologists had come up with a way to improve the glass performance for drop and scratch resistance at the same time. Compared to the previous generation, Corning Gorilla Glass 6, they engineered Corning Gorilla Glass Victus to better survive drops from up to 2M. Additionally, Gorilla Glass Victus has up to 4X better scratch resistance than competitive aluminosilicate from other manufacturers.
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Watch this space as we continue to illustrate the history and science of Corning Gorilla Glass.
Meet our illustrious illustrator
Julia Castaño was born in a small town of Extremadura, Spain. Her adventurer sister would bring her books from abroad and, upon laying eyes on Mary Blair’s Alice in Wonderland, Julia grew up dreaming of strange and colourful worlds. Following the white rabbit, Julia moved to Madrid where she graduated in Fine Arts. After hopping to Tokyo, where she learned a bit of Japanese and a lot about manga, and New York, where she took her first illustration course, she went back to Madrid and settled down for a spell. She worked as a Graphic Designer and Art Director until the white rabbit led her to move once again, this time to sunny (ahem) London, where she obtained her Master’s Degree in Illustration. Her shelves are filled with children’s books and graphic novels. When she’s not drawing, you can often find her watching a Studio Ghibli movie snuggled up in her little den, which she shares with her four cats and a Monkey.

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Join us on the journey of two master glassmakers who attempt to revive an ancient magical kingdom!