Gordon Moore, the electronics pioneer who co-founded Intel Corp. and whose groundbreaking theories defined the tempo of innovation in semiconductors, has died at the age of 94.
A 1965 article by Mr. Moore published in the trade journal Electronics predicted the pace of miniaturization in computer chips and anticipated the development of home computers, smart wristwatches, automatic controls for cars and other inventions as electronic components etched on squares of silicon become smaller, faster and cheaper. Moore’s Law, as his prediction became known, proved a remarkably accurate observation about how quickly engineers would create advances in digital technology that have led to countless fixtures of modern life.
The soft-spoken engineer and his colleagues at Fairchild Semiconductor and later Intel also inspired many other engineers to form tech spinoffs and startups, setting a pattern that would enrich many entrepreneurs and investors. Mr. Moore also encouraged philanthropy, using his Intel shares to endow a foundation that managed more than $9 billion in assets and had disbursed more than $5 billion since its founding.
A recipient of the Presidential Medal of Freedom and the National Medal of Technology, Mr. Moore was the last survivor of a leadership troika at Intel, which remains the dominant supplier of calculating engines for computers. Where Intel co-founder Robert Noyce became an industry statesman and Andy Grove a management guru, the unassuming Mr. Moore seemed less concerned with business leadership than with creating a company culture that exalted engineers and innovation.
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