The history of Autotote dates to 1917, when George Julius founded Automatic Totalisators Limited in Australia to build the totalizator system he had invented.

[10] In 1978, the U.S. division was renamed as Autotote Ltd., to reflect its diversification into businesses other than totalizators, such as lottery systems, off-track betting, and slot machine accounting.

"[21] The role of Autotote's software in the 2002 Breeders' Cup betting scandal caused the National Thoroughbred Racing Association to take swift action in the face of a growing outcry once the nature of the scam emerged.

[22][23] In 2007, the New York Times credited Scientific Games and Gtech for transforming what was known "historically [as] an underground operation run by mobsters" into "a lucrative, state-sponsored corporate enterprise.

[24] In March 2017, Scientific Games acquired rights to use the James Bond franchise through a deal with Eon Productions and MGM Interactive.

[33] Wholly owned subsidiaries of Light & Wonder include The Global Draw,[34] Barcrest,[35] Bally Technologies,[36][37] WMS Industries,[38][39] MDI Entertainment, LLC, and NYX Gaming Group Limited.

[40] In 2006, the company acquired the lottery operations of the Swedish firm EssNet,[41] as well as The Global Draw which provides server-based gambling machines to betting shops in the UK.

[46] When NYX acquisition was completed, the company gained the sports-betting platform OpenBet which handles about 80% of all sports betting in the UK as of 2018.

[48][49] In May 2022, after previously reaching an exclusive distribution agreement with the company in Europe and North America, Light and Wonder acquired Playzido.