The modern binary number system goes back to Gottfried Leibniz who in the 17th century proposed and developed it in his article Explication de l'Arithmétique Binaire [1] . Leibniz invented the system around 1679 but he published it in 1703. He already used symbols 0 and 1.

Who invented binary?

In numerous, and even more recent, writings, the universal scholar Gottfried Wilhelm Leibniz is referred to as the discoverer or inventor of the binary system. During his lifetime there was no use for such a system, but since the 1940s it has been an important basis for electronic digital computers.

Why was binary invented?

Binary numerals were central to Leibniz's theology. He believed that binary numbers were symbolic of the Christian idea of creatio ex nihilo or creation out of nothing. Leibniz was trying to find a system that converts logic verbal statements into a pure mathematical one.