Commercial alliance
In a physics-inspired model of industrial alliance formation, companies (A, B and C) are represented as particles that interact via forces of attraction and repulsion. The particles aggregate into clusters, and the most likely configuration is that with the lowest total energy. When the model is applied to the formation of computer-manufacturer alliances in the 1980s, during a battle to establish a standard operating system for the industry, it predicts the formation of two coalitions very similar to those that arose in practice: Unix International Incorporated and the Open Software Foundation. The only company that was mislocated was IBM.