Company profile: With its Pentium and Celeron microprocessors used in about 80 per cent of all new computers, Intel is by far the world's top semiconductor-maker.
Intel (a contraction of "integrated electronics") was started in 1968 in Mountain View, California, by three engineers from Fairchild Semiconductors. The company initially focused on developing technology for silicon-based memory chips, such as the DRAM in 1970 and the EPROM in 1971.
Intel experienced success in the memory chip market until 1985, when cut-throat pricing by Japanese competitors forced the company out of the DRAM market, leading the company to shift its focus to microprocessors.
After enjoying success in the late 1980s and early 1990s with its 286, 386, and 486 microprocessors, Intel introduced its Pentium chip in 1993 and its low-end Celeron chip in 1998.
The company's most recent release, the Pentium 4, clocks in at more than 3 gigahertz. Intel's largest customers are personal computer titans Dell and Hewlett-Packard.
In 2003, Intel boasted 79,700 employees and sales of $30.1 billion (€25.1 billion), up 12.6 per cent from the previous year. Profits in 2003 were $5.6 billion, soaring 81 per cent on the previous year.
The company's most successful year was 2000, when it employed 86,100 people and enjoyed sales of $33.7 billion.
