Fairchild

Fairchild Semiconductor
Founded on October 1, 1957, in California.
Founders included the famous "Traitorous Eight," among others: Robert Noyce, Gordon Moore, Eugene Kleiner – all previously with Shockley Semiconductor
Financed by Sherman Fairchild, after whom the company is named

Technological Milestones
Developed the first commercially viable integrated circuits (ICs)
Made a crucial contribution to the moon landing: Fairchild ICs were used in US space programs
Laid the foundation for the second industrial revolution in electronics
Mother of Silicon Valley
In the 1960s, over 30 companies emerged from Fairchild spin-offs ("Fairchildren"), including:

Intel (Noyce & Moore)

AMD

National Semiconductor
Fairchild is therefore considered the birthplace of the Silicon Valley ecosystem
Changes and Acquisitions

1987: Acquired by National Semiconductor

1997: Spun off again as an independent company.

2016: Final acquisition by ON Semiconductor (now onsemi)

Significance today
Although the Fairchild brand no longer exists independently, its influence lives on in:
the modern semiconductor industry,
the “Fairchildren” companies,
and the entire tech culture of Silicon Valley.