The Traitorous Eight at Fairchild Semiconductor in 1959. From left: Gordon Moore, Sheldon Roberts, Eugene Kleiner, Robert Noyce, Victor Grinich, Julius Blank, Jean Hoerni, and Jay Last

The Traitorous Eight are eight men who left Shockley Semiconductor Laboratory to form Fairchild Semiconductor in 1957. This derogatory term was used by William Shockley, director of Shockley Labs, while the more neutral term was the "Fairchild Eight" or the "Fairchildren"^[1] Image File history File links Traitorous8. ... Fairchild Semiconductor introduced the first commercially available integrated circuit (although at almost the same time as one from Texas Instruments), and would go on to become one of the major players in the evolution of Silicon Valley in the 1960s. ... Gordon Moore This article is about the co-founder of Intel and coiner of what became Moores law. ... Sheldon Roberts is a semiconductor pioneer, and member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... Eugene Kleiner (May 12, 1923 – 20 November 2003) was one of the original founders of Kleiner Perkins, the Silicon Valley venture capital firm which later became Harry Balls Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers. ... Robert Noyce Robert Noyce (December 12, 1927 – June 3, 1990), nicknamed the Mayor of Silicon Valley, co-founded Fairchild Semiconductor in 1957 and Intel in 1968. ... Victor Grinich (November 24, 1924 - November 5, 2000) was a pioneer in the semiconductor industry and a member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... Julius Blank is a semiconductor pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight. ... Jean Hoerni (1924- January 12, 1997) was a silicon transistor pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight. ... Jay Last is a silicon pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... Fairchild Semiconductor introduced the first commercially available integrated circuit (although at almost the same time as one from Texas Instruments), and would go on to become one of the major players in the evolution of Silicon Valley in the 1960s. ... Fairchild Semiconductor introduced the first commercially available integrated circuit (although at almost the same time as one from Texas Instruments), and would go on to become one of the major players in the evolution of Silicon Valley in the 1960s. ... 1957 (MCMLVII) was a common year starting on Tuesday of the Gregorian calendar. ... William Bradford Shockley (February 13, 1910 – August 12, 1989) American physicist, eugenicist and co-inventor of the transistor with John Bardeen and Walter Houser Brattain, for which he was awarded the Nobel Prize in physics. ...

They left because they did not agree or work well with William Shockley's managerial style. Specifically, he wanted the research done his way and expected a certain result instead of letting the research guide them. Shockley envisioned the operation of the Laboratory as if the researchers were the Knights of the Round Table and he were King Arthur.^[2]

The eight employees went to Arnold Beckman and asked him to replace Shockley. Beckman tried to find a new manager and left Shockley as a director with limited powers. As the search dragged on, it became apparent that Beckman could not find a replacement so he restored Shockley's responsibilities. The eight men then resigned and signed a research contract with Fairchild Camera and Instrument Corporation to form Fairchild Semiconductor. Arnold Orville Beckman (April 10, 1900 – May 18, 2004) was an American chemist who founded Beckman Instruments based on his invention of the pH meter, a device for measuring acidity, in 1934. ... Fairchild Semiconductor introduced the first commercially available integrated circuit (although at almost the same time as one from Texas Instruments), and would go on to become one of the major players in the evolution of Silicon Valley in the 1960s. ... Fairchild Semiconductor introduced the first commercially available integrated circuit (although at almost the same time as one from Texas Instruments), and would go on to become one of the major players in the evolution of Silicon Valley in the 1960s. ...

Their entrepreneurial desires did not end with Fairchild. Like many other Fairchild employees, seven of the eight went on to found various spinoff companies (Victor Grinich became a professor at UC Berkeley and Stanford University). (These spinoffs and their founders are sometimes known as "Fairchildren"). The most successful were Robert Noyce and Gordon Moore, founders of Intel, and Eugene Kleiner, co-founder of the Kleiner Perkins venture capital firm. Additionally, Sheldon Roberts, Jean Hoerni and Jay Last founded what later became Teledyne, while Julius Blank co-founded Xicor. Victor Grinich (November 24, 1924 - November 5, 2000) was a pioneer in the semiconductor industry and a member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... The University of California, Berkeley (also known as Cal, UC Berkeley, UCB, or simply Berkeley) is a prestigious, public, coeducational university situated in the foothills of Berkeley, California to the east of San Francisco Bay, overlooking the Golden Gate and its bridge. ... The Leland Stanford Junior University, commonly known as Stanford University (or simply Stanford), is a private university located approximately 37 miles (60 kilometers) southeast of San Francisco in an [1] of Santa Clara County. ... Robert Noyce Robert Noyce (December 12, 1927 – June 3, 1990), nicknamed the Mayor of Silicon Valley, co-founded Fairchild Semiconductor in 1957 and Intel in 1968. ... Gordon Moore This article is about the co-founder of Intel and coiner of what became Moores law. ... Intel Corporation (NASDAQ: INTC, SEHK: 4335), founded in 1968 as Integrated Electronics Corporation, is a U.S.-based multinational corporation that is best known for designing and manufacturing microprocessors and specialized integrated circuits. ... Eugene Kleiner (May 12, 1923 – 20 November 2003) was one of the original founders of Kleiner Perkins, the Silicon Valley venture capital firm which later became Harry Balls Kleiner, Perkins, Caufield & Byers. ... Kleiner Perkins is a famous silicon valley venture capital firm. ... Sheldon Roberts is a semiconductor pioneer, and member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... Jean Hoerni (1924- January 12, 1997) was a silicon transistor pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight. ... Jay Last is a silicon pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight that founded Silicon Valley. ... Teledyne (NYSE: TDY) is an industrial conglomerate primarily based in the United States but with global operations. ... Julius Blank is a semiconductor pioneer and a member of the Traitorous Eight. ...

References

1. ^ Blasi, Joseph; "Douglas Kruse, and Aaron Bernstein" (2003). “1”, In the Company of Owners: The Truth About Stock Options (And Why Every Employee Should Have Them), 7, Basic Books.
2. ^ ibid.

External links

• 1999 Computerworld interview with Eugene Kleiner, Julius Blank and Jay Last