The Austin Museum of Digital Art is the brainchild of Harold Chaput, then a Computer Sciences doctoral student at the University of Texas at Austin, and Christopher Rankin, an art history graduate of Trinity University and experienced museum worker. Rankin was dissatisfied with the state of the contemporary art scene in Austin. Chaput was connected to many artists and musicians employed in high tech positions who were looking for a creative outlet. By establishing an organization with the goals of supporting the production and exhibition of new work and encouraging discussion about the role of technology in current contemporary art, Chaput and Rankin hoped that they could encourage a community of artists, musicians, and technologists to create cutting-edge digital-based contemporary art.