The Men Behind the Microchip: The Early Years of Intel Founders Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore
The Men Behind the Microchip: The Early Years of Intel Founders Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore
Gordon Earle Moore was born on January 3, 1929, in San Francisco, California. From an early age, he discovered his natural curiosity and passion for science. In fact, his hearing would later be damaged as a result of his passion for creating loud explosions with the materials he found in chemistry sets as a young boy. “A couple of ounces of dynamite makes for a great firecracker,” he jokes.
That passion stayed with Moore as he continued on through junior high school and on to university. “From the time I was in junior high school I decided I wanted to be a chemist,” says Moore. “I didn’t quite know what a chemist was, but I kept it up and got my PhD in physical chemistry.” In 1950, Moore graduated with his PhD from the California Institute of Technology.
Robert Noyce, now nicknamed “the Mayor of Silicon Valley,” was born in Burlington, Iowa, on December 12, 1927. The son of a preacher, Noyce majored in physics at Grinnell College. Always the charismatic leader of the crowd, Noyce almost got himself expelled for a prank he pulled. After stealing a pig from a nearby college for a school luau and slaughtering it in one of the college halls, Noyce was saved from expulsion only thanks to the efforts of his physics professor, Grant Gale.
While a student at Grinnell, Gale had gotten a hold of two of the very first transistors manufactured by Bell Labs and he introduced them to Noyce who was immediately hooked. Noyce went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to obtain his PhD in physics, only to find he knew more about transistors than did many of his professors. In 1953, Noyce received his PhD and, after a brief stint making transistors for the electronics firm Philco, decided he wanted to work at Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory. In a single day, Noyce packed up his wife and two children, flew out to California, and bought a house – all before he had even gone to visit Shockley to ask for a job.
Shockley wound up hiring Noyce, and it was while working here that he would meet his future Intel co-founder, Moore. In little time, visions and egos were clashing at Shockley. Seven of the company’s young researchers, including Moore, who had been hired out of Caltech, decided they were going to leave and start up a company on their own. Together, in 1957, the “Traitorous Eight” left Shockley and founded Fairchild Semiconductor. It would be the beginnings of a success that neither Moore nor Noyce could have ever predicted.
The Men Behind the Microchip The Early Years of Intel Founders Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore
Like this article? Share it with your friends
As self-described “accidental entrepreneurs,” Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore created what would become by far the foremost semiconductor maker in the world. They didn’t set out to create a billion dollar company or to transform an industry, but that is exactly what the pair did when they founded Intel in 1968. Though best known for its Pentium and Celeron microprocessors that can be found in more than three-quarters of the new PCs that come today, Intel also makes flash memories and embedded semiconductors. Now, with over $35 billion in revenue and annual growth standing at 13.5 percent, the legacy left by Noyce and Moore remains one of the strongest examples of innovation and entrepreneurship in the 21st century.
Gordon Earle Moore was born on January 3, 1929, in San Francisco, California. From an early age, he discovered his natural curiosity and passion for science. In fact, his hearing would later be damaged as a result of his passion for creating loud explosions with the materials he found in chemistry sets as a young boy. “A couple of ounces of dynamite makes for a great firecracker,” he jokes.
That passion stayed with Moore as he continued on through junior high school and on to university. “From the time I was in junior high school I decided I wanted to be a chemist,” says Moore. “I didn’t quite know what a chemist was, but I kept it up and got my PhD in physical chemistry.” In 1950, Moore graduated with his PhD from the California Institute of Technology.
Robert Noyce, now nicknamed “the Mayor of Silicon Valley,” was born in Burlington, Iowa, on December 12, 1927. The son of a preacher, Noyce majored in physics at Grinnell College. Always the charismatic leader of the crowd, Noyce almost got himself expelled for a prank he pulled. After stealing a pig from a nearby college for a school luau and slaughtering it in one of the college halls, Noyce was saved from expulsion only thanks to the efforts of his physics professor, Grant Gale.
While a student at Grinnell, Gale had gotten a hold of two of the very first transistors manufactured by Bell Labs and he introduced them to Noyce who was immediately hooked. Noyce went to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology to obtain his PhD in physics, only to find he knew more about transistors than did many of his professors. In 1953, Noyce received his PhD and, after a brief stint making transistors for the electronics firm Philco, decided he wanted to work at Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory. In a single day, Noyce packed up his wife and two children, flew out to California, and bought a house – all before he had even gone to visit Shockley to ask for a job.
Shockley wound up hiring Noyce, and it was while working here that he would meet his future Intel co-founder, Moore. In little time, visions and egos were clashing at Shockley. Seven of the company’s young researchers, including Moore, who had been hired out of Caltech, decided they were going to leave and start up a company on their own. Together, in 1957, the “Traitorous Eight” left Shockley and founded Fairchild Semiconductor. It would be the beginnings of a success that neither Moore nor Noyce could have ever predicted.
The Men Behind the Microchip The Early Years of Intel Founders Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore
Like this article? Share it with your friends
 | |
 |
No article feedback found. |
| |
Leave Your Feedback |
 | |
| |||
Stephanie RobeyStephanie Robey is President and CoFounder of Pivot Positive, LLC - an Internet marketing business focused on helping people start work at home ventures. Previously, she was employed at The Search Agency with over 20 years experience in graphic design and 10 years experience in online marketing. She was responsible for launching the Conversion Path Optimization (CPO) unit where she and her team have conducted hundreds of optimization tests for online companies across multiple verticals. She is a successful entrepreneur having started and sold 2 companies and remains on the board of directors of the third, PhotoSpin.com Stephanie began her career in the direct marketing realm creating and producing direct mail for many of the major cable television companies and directly attributes her understanding of Internet marketing to those early offline experiences. Stephanie is a graduate of San Diego State University with a BFA in Graphic Arts and also holds an Executive MBA from the Graziadio School of Business and Management at Pepperdine University. Read Steph's Blog Meet Steph and Dave Sign up for our Free 7-Day BootCamp: Self Employed & Rich - Visit Stephanie Robey's Website |
|||
David AchesonDavid Acheson is the founder of DCJA Consultancy. DCJA Consultancy is a management consultancy business specialising in B2B sales consultancy. They offer bespoke and packaged sales consultancy including Sales Optimisation Review, Interim Sales Management, Sales & Marketing Review, 1:1 Sales & Management Staff Analysis, Management Training, Solution Sales Training, Creation of New Pay Plan, KPI's, run Customer Feedback Campaigns, assist with Recruitment, Coaching, Appraisals and set up Strategic Marketing Campaigns. David spent his early career in accountancy and then moved into sales in 1982, working in Office Equipment, IT, Advertising, Training, Outsourcing and Consultancy. He has held many Senior Positions in SMBs and Global Organisations including Head of Sales Operations & Head of Business Development. His knowledge, skills and great experience of the Sales Industry has led to David making keynote speeches and running educational sessions to key businesses through organisations including The Chamber of Commerce and Business Link. - Visit David Acheson's Website |
|||
Anne BarrAnne Barr has over 26 years experience in sales and marketing, six years as a franchisee. She has assisted over 367 business owners and purchasers to achieve their goals in career change, transition and exit strategy. She holds the designation of Certified Franchise Executive from the International Franchise Association, Certified Business Intermediary from the International Business Brokers Association and Board Certified Broker from the Texas Association of Business Brokers. Anne is active in professional organizations, networking groups and volunteers for non-profit entities. As owner/operator of four successful businesses, Anne has proven people skills and enjoys helping clients find the right "fit" in business ownership. Visit www.FranchiseOpportunitySpecialist.com for more information about me and my company. - Visit Anne Barr's Website |
|||
Casey GollanCasey Gollan, Business Coaching & Mentoring Programs. Add $1 Million to $10 Million in the next 1 to 3 years. Since 1996 Casey has to added hundreds of millions of dollars to businesses. Watch a free video see client results Business Coaching website. - Visit Casey Gollan's Website |
|||
Dianne CramptonDianne Crampton is an executive leadership coach, team consultant, author and president of TIGERS Success Series, Inc. Dianne has been helping CEO's and Executives connect their employees to their core values and goals for over 20 years using the trademarked TIGERS team culture process, which stands for trust, interdependence, genuineness, empathy, risk and success. To download a free white paper on behaviors that build strong teams and behaviors that will predictably tear them down go here. - Visit Dianne Crampton's Website |
|||
Joe DagerJoe Dager is President of Business901, a progressive coaching company providing no-nonsense direction in areas such as Lean Six Sigma Marketing and organized referral marketing. What others say: In the past 20 years, Joe and I have collaborated on many difficult issues. Joe’s ability to combine his expertise with “out of the box” thinking is unsurpassed. He has always delivered quickly, cost effectively and with ingenuity. A brilliant mind that is always a pleasure to work with.” - James R. If you want to learn more about Business901, start a conversation with us. We can be found @ Web/Blog: Business901.com Web/Blog: FundingYourNonprofit.com LinkedIn Profile Follow me on Twitter - Visit Joe Dager's Website |
|||
John PowerJohn Power, founder of Biltmore Franchise Consulting, has extensive experience developing and marketing franchises and business opportunities. He has been in and around franchising for over twenty years. From 1980 through 1990 he conceptualized, organized, and developed the American Video Association. He grew AVA to 2,000 national members, before selling the company it 1990. It was later merged into another home video marketing company. From 2000 to 2005 he worked as a contract marketing and human resources consultant to several local and national companies. In 2005 Mr. Power began working as a franchise development consultant on a full-time basis. Since that time he has helped more than three dozen companies initiate and develop their franchising program. He notes that there are many companies interested in developing a franchise program, and who need his specialized assistance. Mr. Power is a “hands-on” franchise consultant. He said, “I am the ‘nuts and bolts’ person who tends to the details for my clients.” Mr. Power holds a B.S. degree with a major in Marketing. See: www.biltmorefranchise.com You may contact Mr. Power at: jpower@biltmorefranchise.co - Visit John Power's Website |
|||
Staging DivaDebra Gould, aka The Staging Diva®, is President of Six Elements Inc., an internationally recognized home staging company. Inspired by many requests from aspiring home stagers wanting to start similar businesses, Gould created the Staging Diva Home Staging Business Training Program. Gould has trained over 1000 Staging Diva Graduates worldwide to start staging businesses. Buying decorating and selling six of her own homes in four years lead to an interest in real estate staging which she turned into a career with the launch of sixelements.com in 2002. Since then she has staged hundreds of homes in addition to teaching home staging training. Gould is the author of several home staging resources including a series of popular ebooks made up of a Design Guide, Color Guide and Portfolio Guide. For more information about Debra Gould visit stagingdiva.com. - Visit Staging Diva's Website |
|||
|
To learn more about the Evan Elite Author Program please contact us. | |||
|
 | ||
|
||
|
||
|
||
 | ||
 |
| Have you written articles that would be of value to entrepreneurs? Become an expert on our site by publishing them! Expose yourself to a wide audience, drive more traffic to your website and get more sales! Click Here for details. |
 |
 |
| Modeling the Masters: Learn the true secrets behind Walt Disney's business success factors & grow your company! Video produced by Phanta Media |
|
|
 |
"Learn straight from Evan how you can Make a Full Time Income (And More) from a Website"
Click Here To Learn More |
|
|
|
|
Get advice & tips from famous business owners, new articles by entrepreneur experts, my latest website updates, & special sneak peaks at what's to come!
|
|
 |
 Managing Growth Networking Is The Future DCJA Consultancy Case Study 3 Networking Skills Choice of Forum |
|
 | ||
 |
Top 50 SEO Posts - 2007
Top SEO Posts of the Year | |
 |
Email The Reporters
Press Release Builder | |
| ||
 | ||||
| ||||
|
| ||||
| ||||
|
|
|
|
|
||||||||||||
|
Email us your ideas on how to make our website more valuable! Thank you Sharon from Toronto Salsa Lessons / Classes for your suggestions to make the newsletter look like the website and profile younger entrepreneurs like Jennifer Lopez and Sean Combs!
|
|
|
| ||||||||||
|
| ||||||||||
|
|
||||||||||