The story of Adriano Olivetti and his development of the family business, which expanded from typewriters to computers. This first segment shows CIA officers who consider Olivetti's electronic brain a great threat to American business. The segment also features a flashback to Adriano's childhood in Ivrea, when he was not too eager to learn the ropes.

We start discovering what kind of person Adriano Olivetti is.

Adriano has some unwelcome news from Paola, his wife. On a nighttime walk above Ivrea, Adriano is threatened by a woman brandishing a gun.

There is an injured person in the woods in need of aid and Adriano doesn't hesitate. A birthday party is going on in the villa.

Adriano is doing the right thing. But the Germans come looking for an American pilot and search the whole house.

The family has realized that staying is not a wise choice, so, reluctantly, everyone starts getting ready to leave their beautiful home.

Adriano's father has decided to leave him the factory, but Adriano is not so sure about that. Adriano is still very much in love with Paola after two years apart.

The war is over, and Adriano goes back to Ivrea. The company is barely surviving, and Adriano's siblings look to him for solutions.

The Olivetti siblings have to decide whether to sell a stake in the factory or not. During the discussion, Paola arrives with the children.

Adriano decides to run the factory his father left him. He imagines a factory that supports culture and beauty, respects women, and is a life model. Mauro has a hard time agreeing with him, given the financial problems they face.

Adriano tries to talk with the girl who stole a wallet, but she's too frightened. Not everyone in the family agrees with how Adriano has been running the factory.

Adriano knows what kind of portable typewriter he wants to build and he knows who can build it. He thinks he knows what people want, even better than the people themselves.

Everyone is talking about Adriano Olivetti, both on Italian soil and abroad. His innovative ideas are creating quite a stir and people worry that he might be a communist.

Paola is having trouble with Carlo and shows up at Adriano's in search of consolation.

Paola is more clearheaded after a night's sleep. Adriano isn't happy, but he has other things to think about such as the new plans for the compact typewriter. He and Libero get a visit from the girl-thief again.

Teresa goes back to the factory, and finds out she has talent. Karen Bates, the American photographer, comes to visit Adriano, and he sees right away how he can involve her in one of his projects.

Adriano shows Karen Bates around the new building and she writes her report. The new portable typewriter designed by Libero is finally ready.

The "Lettera 22" portable typewriter is selling well, although Mauro isn't in complete agreement about the price. Libero and Teresa make some plans, and Mister Dalmasso comes around again.

Teresa and Libero go to the movies together, and things seem great. But Libero has something important to tell her, something she had no idea about.

Adriano is very happy with how things have been going for the new Olivetti portable typewriter, but his siblings and partners in the business are not so happy. For one thing, they don't like not seeing any of the profits.

Adriano decides to leave running the factory to Marcello and goes off on his own to work on his other projects. But country roads are dangerous in the pouring rain...

Even though he is no longer leading the company, Adriano is as active as ever. Events come together that motivate him to put his theories into practice.

As luck would have it, Adriano has a chance encounter with a young woman who has a problem he is uniquely capable of solving. Teresa and her daughter Maria have an unexpected caller.

Adriano tells Grazia his ideas for a new kind of city. Back at the factory, cuts are being made, and there is talk of layoffs. We also discover an ironic fact about Adriano.