1 Company in Wilmington, Delaware

DuPont began in 1802 as a gunpowder mill on the Brandywine River in Delaware — founded by a French immigrant family fleeing the Revolution — and spent its first century as America's leading explosives maker. Its second century was even more consequential: the company that invented nylon (1935), neoprene, Teflon, Kevlar, and Tyvek didn't just make chemicals — it created entirely new material categories that reshaped the world. The modern DuPont is a specialized materials company, having shed its agriculture (now Corteva) and much of its commodity chemicals (now Dow). Its current portfolio focuses on electronics (semiconductor materials, circuit board laminates, and the photoresists used in chipmaking), water & protection (reverse osmosis membranes, Tyvek protective apparel), and advanced materials (Kevlar for bulletproof vests, Nomex for firefighter gear, and automotive adhesives). Headquartered in Wilmington, Delaware — near the original powder mills — with about 24,000 employees and annual revenue near US$13 billion, DuPont is a fraction of its former size but more profitable per dollar of sales. For engineers and manufacturers, the DuPont name remains synonymous with materials innovation — the company that turned chemistry into brand names the whole world knows.