Interview with Vinod Dham, father of the Pentium, on a life in technology and venture investing

Interview with Vinod Dham, father of the Pentium, on a life in technology and venture investing

Vinod Dham has lived the quintessential Silicon Valley rags to riches immigrant story. Born in Pune, India, he came to the U.S. in 1975 as an engineering student with just $8 in his pocket. He became a chip engineer and helped invent Intel’s first flash… Continue Reading

Post mortem: The inside story behind the collapse of chip startup Montalvo Systems

Post mortem: The inside story behind the collapse of chip startup Montalvo Systems

Montalvo Systems was one of the most ambitious chip startups in recent history and one of a few that dared to take on Intel in the low-power mobile processor market. Instead, it shut down in April, unable to raise a new round of financing.

The company… Continue Reading

Friday roundup: pirates beware, Wii gamers despair

Friday roundup: pirates beware, Wii gamers despair

Avast ye pirates! The Bush Administration is accusing China, Russia and seven other countries of failing to protect American producers of movies and other entertainment from piracy. The question comes to mind: why did it take so long for the U.S. to figure this out?… Continue Reading

Sun Microsystems could use Montalvo as a strategic lever against Intel

Sun Microsystems could use Montalvo as a strategic lever against Intel

Setting up a possible brawl with Intel, Sun Microsystems is rumored to be acquiring the assets of stealth microprocessor design company Montalvo Systems, according to a source familiar with the matter.

Sun, based in Menlo Park, Calif., will acquire Montalvo’s patents, intellectual property and hire the… Continue Reading

Montalvo seeking a hoard of cash to avoid shutdown

Montalvo seeking a hoard of cash to avoid shutdown

Montalvo Systems has been seeking a hoard of cash in its latest fundraising round, but the chip startup is dangerously close to running out of money, VentureBeat has learned.

Although it raised $73 million, the company has run into problems finishing a chip that will compete… Continue Reading

Roundup: Amazon S3, VentureBeat go down, Montalvo’s mobile chip and more

Roundup: Amazon S3, VentureBeat go down, Montalvo’s mobile chip and more

1. Amazon S3, VentureBeat go down
2. Montalvo Systems vs. Intel, with chip for handheld devices
3. Fox Interactive to introduce “music Hulu for MySpace”
4. Yahoo’s board moving against Yang
5. Google searchers are wealthier, buy more online
6. Xobni hires Jeff Bonforte away from Yahoo, to be its… Continue Reading