Chip Legends

Semiconductor startups are the creative engines which drive the electronics industry because they develop state-of-the-art integrated circuits for next generation products and set the pace for semiconductor innovation. InsideChips is for entrepreneurs, investors, electronics executives, EDA tools marketers,  silicon foundry sales executives, service providers and for executives or firms who wish to do deals with chip startups.

Venture Capitalists obtain a quick-start in sourcing deals and doing due-diligence. Semiconductor startup founders and management can access resources and consultative reports to get their company on a faster track and avoid pitfalls. Companies selling services and products (EDA tools, foundry, PR, rep/distribution, equipment) to semiconductor startups benefit from the extensive database of profiles and follow-up coverage of emerging chip ventures -- enabling them to maximize their business development efforts.  Private investors benefit from an industry insider's stock market viewpoints and analysis of public companies.

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The "Chip Legends" project summarizes the pursuits of captains of the silicon industry, as well as other luminaries, gurus and personalities who were instrumental in shaping the early days of the semiconductor industry in Silicon Valley and beyond. Click on the picture for additional historical information. While you are browsing, take InsideChips' semiconductor Trivia Quiz.

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Tier Logic Structured ASICs were supposed to die but it appears that some startups never give up. Such is the case of Tier Logic (formerly Viciciv Technology) which hopes ones again to prove the naysayers wrong and take manufacturing to the structured ASIC level. . . . Continue Silicon Frontline Technologies Silicon Frontline Technology (SFT), a new company founded by EDA technologists, unveiled its first products in a bid to bring post-layout verification to the next level. . . . Continue Quantenna Communications Wireless chip startup Quantenna Communications was founded in January 2006 to focus its development efforts on MIMO (multiple-input, multiple-output) and to solve bandwidth reliability issues which has held back market development for in-home multimedia distribution. The company describes itself as a "developer of silicon for intelligent wireless networking that delivers guaranteed high-speed wireless bandwidth in any size home, anytime, anywhere." . . . Continue OneChip Photonics OneChip Photonics, an Ottawa-based fabless developer of high-performance optical transceivers, is forging ahead with its roadmap to deploy a fully integrated FTTH (Fiber-to-the-Home) transceiver technology and expand its operations globally. . . . Continue

ZeroG Wireless Taps Atheros Exec as its New CEO ZeroG Wireless, a pioneer in low-power embedded Wi-Fi design, named Greg Winner as the company's new CEO . . . Continue Not a Hold'em Market The chart below shows the historical movement of the PE ratio for the Standard & Poor's 500 index since 1900. . . . Continue Japanese Wireless Carrier Invests in Tensilica Tensilica® has received a strategic investment from DOCOMO. DOCOMO Capital is the corporate venture arm of NTT DOCOMO, Japan's leading wireless carrier. . . . Continue Exar Swallows Galazar Exar, a long-time Fremont-based chip maker, acquired Galazar Networks, an Ottawa, Canada-based supplier of telecom chips. . . . Continue Microtune Tunes Leadership With Promotion Microtune® (NASDAQ: TUNE) announced the resignation of chief operating officer Albert (Bud) Taddiken, who plans to retire. . . . Continue DAC 2009 Brings CEO Panel Back After 4-Year Hiatus Now that the EDA exhibition season is in full swing, it is worthwhile to note that DAC 2009 is bringing back the once-popular EDA CEO panel. . . . Continue Altera Loses CFO as Yahoo Continues Out-of-the-Box Talent Hunt Continuing to look beyond its community to bring in new blood, Yahoo reached outside the company and outside the Internet sector to replace departing CFO, Blake Jorgensen. . . . Continue Cadence Signals Further Restructuring Under it latest chief, Lip-bu Tan, Cadence Design Systems (NASDAQ:CDNS) began to implement restructuring measures designed to further streamline operations and position itself for its next phase of st . . . Continue Arasan Adds Analog IP With Acquisition Arasan Chip Systems, a provider of IP cores expanded its capabilities with the acquisition of AFTEK's Bangalore-based Analog Division. . . . Continue Prism Circuis Sells To MoSys MoSys (NASDAQ:MOSY), a provider of high-density SoC memory IP, acquired substantially all of the assets and business of privately held Prism Circuits, a supplier of high data rate parallel and serial interface (I/O) IP. . . . Continue Microsemi to Acquire Nexsem Microsemi (Nasdaq:MSCC), a manufacturer of high performance analog mixed signal integrated circuits and high reliability semiconductors, has executed an asset purchase agreement with Nexsem . . . Continue The Economy: A View from InsideChips' Founder I don't know how to get around this big obstacle:  the horizon shows nothing but deficits as far as the eye can see.  The present rise in long-term rates, i.e., drop in 30-year Treasury bond . . . Continue

Managing the Startup Marcom Program From a management viewpoint, one of the biggest dilemmas of startup technology-based companies, which are relatively small and with limited resources, is how to get their names spread throughout the electronics community. Especially in the case of semiconductor startups with limited budgets, to do so sometimes requires guerrilla tactics. But one of the pitfalls for engineers who start up a company is the notion that if they build a better mousetrap, the world will come and beat down their door to buy their product or service. . . . Continue Map Out Your Standards Strategy Should you be chasing standards with your chips or playing the proprietary game? This question goes to the heart of your company business plan, and you need a well defined answer. . . . Continue