The Megacorps
There are 23 corporations that are traditionally called "the megacorps": most of them have been around since before the sundering and have the most say, the most resources, and the most power in the Gemini. However, since the sundering numerous corporations have cropped up that come close to this lofty status, so that there are another 50 corps or so that have their own spacecraft, their own black ops teams, etc. Of these, perhaps 20 are pawns of the 23 heavy hitters, so that there are perhaps a total of 50 independent corporate entities vieing (spelling) with each other for power, prestige, and money. This list will include some of the more noteworthy:
Yggdrasil: a lumber giant, this corporation plants, harvests, and processes the huge amount of lumber used for construction, fermentation into chemicals (such as oils for plastic), and paper production throughout the Gemini. Unlike many of its megacorp brethren, Yggdrasil often has a significant presence on many frontier worlds, where lumber supplies are still plentiful (read: less need for resource management = higher profit). Yggdrasil also has a rare and precious contract with the Lycurgans, allowing them to harvest limited amounts of the excellent lumber of priam. Yggdrasil keeps a very low profile on the corp planets, but its name imbues a mixture of fear and awe in frontier inhabitants: Yggdrasil provides much of the resources that keep frontier communities alive, while their exploitative and ruthless tactics simultaneously rob the people of many of their freedoms. Yggdrasil largely controls Lithotech, another powerful corporation that capitalizes on a technology allowing them to rapidly accelerate the production of long chain carbon compounds from organic matter. Lithotech has, in recent years, lost significant market share to R^3, one of the few frontier world based corps. Situated on Nestor 5, R^3 has recycling factories that are able to produce raw materials for plastics and oil production from recycled industrial and personal waste.
Southern-Pacific: SP manufactures the most well known railguns, both for personal and ship and vehicle applications. They also have started a division producing personal ramjet weapons, which have met with a very favorable reception, since their manufacturing precision is considered the highest in the industry. Because of their fairly narrow focus, Southern-Pacific is actually smaller than many non-megacorps, but they continue to be regarded highly.
Cerberus: Originally just an internet security company, the sundering left them the most knowledgeable and capable people for maintaining the web in the Gemini. They aggressively seized this opportunity, to the point where they have essentially a monopoly. They also have the best hackers: it is widely believed that Cerberus finances a large underground business based around selling top secret manufacturing/R&D tech between competing companies. Cerberus also manufactures some computers, although their hardware is too modular, too complicated, and too expensive for most. Hackers largely avoid their products because of the belief that every piece of Cerberus-ware is ingrained with spyware of all kinds.
AI: Asimov Industries produces high end computers. They are a very old corporation, even by megacorp standards, and therefore garner a lot of respect. As such, most powerful AI computer systems in use on the Corp planets (other than Diomedes) are made by Asimov. Although they were approached by the Aeneans to help "jump-start" their own AI company, AI flatly and quite publicly declined: as such, there is significant bad blood between this corp and the Aeneans.
IBM: Industrial Business Machines is a manufacturer of Heavy Machinery of all kinds. They produce bulldozers, cranes, mining machines, etc. Because of the challenge in moving such heavy equipment, they have significant competition from "local" producers on planets that don't have enough industry to support one of their mega-factories. IBM also has a military division that manufactures tanks, APCs, and naval vessels.
