Back in 1981, three engineers from the Massachusetts Institute of Technology founded the American Power Conversion Corporation in order to research and develop solar-powered technologies. However, after only a few years their research funding dried up, which caused the company to shift its focus towards the development of power protection equipment, and in 1984, APC developed its first uninterrupted power supply.

Over the next decade, APC would continue to focus on manufacturing and developing UPS technologies until 1991, when it expanded its product line to include surge protection equipment. By 1994, APC began manufacturing UPS systems, which were specifically designed for mainframe computers, as these were critical to the development and expansion of the fledgling World Wide Web.

Although Schneider Electric acquired the company back in 2007, they continue to produce some of the best uninterrupted power supplies, surge protection equipment, and voltage regulators on the market today.