Visits to vendors were made in 1963, and the Multics specifications were developed and sent out to bid. Senior management visited IBM, Digital Equipment Corporation (DEC), Univac, and Control Data. When it came time to select a vendor for the computer that would support the new OS, the folklore is that IBM pitched the machine that would become the 360/65. They were not interested in the MAC team's ideas on paging and segmentation. Professor Joseph Weizenbaum, then a lecturer at MIT, introduced the MAC team to former colleagues of his from General Electric Phoenix, who were receptive and enthusiastic, and proposed what became the GE-645. DEC also responded to the bid. The GE proposal was chosen in May 1964 (much to the surprise and chagrin of IBM) and the contract signed in August 1964.