11/15/2025
Dr. Marian Croak made it possible for us to talk to each other online. She holds well over 200 patents and even helped create the technology that makes FaceTime, Zoom, and WhatsApp possible. As a child growing up in New York City, she loved watching plumbers and electricians fix things in her family home. Her father Raymond Rodgers saw her curiosity and gave her a chemistry set. That small gift sparked her passion for science and started a journey that would help billions of people.
Marian joined AT&T’s Bell Labs in 1982. After a few years, she noticed a big problem. Phone calls still needed wires, and long-distance conversations were very expensive. Marian helped develop Voice over Internet Protocol (VoIP), which made it possible for voices to travel through the Internet. The early versions failed, but she never gave up. Her work changed communication forever and helped people stay connected through calls, video chats, and messages.
On May 5, 2022, Dr. Marian Croak was inducted into the National Inventors Hall of Fame and today she is Vice President of Engineering at Google. In a 2020 interview with the USPTO, Marian said, "It just helps us to be able to be inspired by someone who is human, who can somehow make what seems impossible possible." Her story shows us all how curiosity, hard work, and compassion can change the way people communicate. It's important for people everywhere to know and remember her name. Thank you Marian.
📸 (Photo: Courtesy of Dr. Marian Croak)
