Gordon Moore died at the age of 94

Gordon Moore and The Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation: The Real Thing about Computers, Personal Portable Communication Equipment and Autonomous Vehicles

The human spirit is the thing. “Moore’s Law” was a term used by a computer scientist at the California Institute of Technology in the early 1970s. “It’s the real thing.”

“Integrated circuits will lead to such wonders as home computers – or at least terminals connected to a central computer – automatic controls for automobiles, and personal portable communications equipment,” Moore wrote in his paper, two decades before the PC revolution and more than 40 years before Apple launched the iPhone.

His prediction that the trend would continue became known as “Moore’s Law” and, later amended to every two years, it helped push Intel and rival chipmakers to aggressively target their research and development resources to make sure that rule of thumb came true.

The first hire by Moore and Noyce was Andy Grove, who would lead Intel through much of its growth in the 1980s and 1990s.

Moore described himself to Fortune magazine as aaccidental entrepreneurial who had no burning desire to start a company, but that’s how he and his associates came to form a powerful partnership.

He and CEO Noyce considered themselves equals despite being executive presidents. From 1979 to 1987 Moore was chairman and CEO and he remained chairman until 1997.

Moore later became known for his philanthropy when he and his wife established the Gordon and Betty Moore Foundation, which focuses on environmental conservation, science, patient care and projects in the San Francisco Bay area. It has donated more than $5.1 billion to charitable causes since its founding in 2000.

He gave hundreds of millions of dollars to the California Institute of Technology and supported the Search for Extraterrestrial Intelligence project.

“Those of us who have met and worked with Gordon will forever be inspired by his wisdom, humility and generosity,” foundation president Harvey Fineberg said in a statement.

Moore’s Law of Silicon Valley: From the Shockley Defectors to Fairchild Semiconductor and on to the Silicon Valley Renegade

The defection by the “traitorous eight,” as the group came to be called, planted the seeds for Silicon Valley’s renegade culture, in which engineers who disagreed with their colleagues didn’t hesitate to become competitors.

The Shockley defectors created Fairchild Semiconductor in 1957, which became one of the first companies to make an integrated circuit.

He received the National Medal of Technology in 1990 from George H.W. Bush.

Despite his renown, Moore was known for his modesty. In 2005, he referred to Moore’s Law as “a lucky guess that got a lot more publicity than it deserved.”