Micron celebrates 40 years of leadership and innovation

Micron Technology Inc. (NASDAQ: MU) today marked its 40th anniversary with a celebration on the steps of the Idaho state Capitol, one of many celebrations at Micron sites around the world.

From its early days as a startup in Boise 40 years ago, Micron has established itself as the world’s fourth-largest semiconductor company, with the broadest portfolio of memory and storage solutions in the industry. Today, Micron employs more than 34,000 people in 17 countries globally. Micron has contributed nearly 40,000 patents over the course of its history, and the company’s commitment to innovation continues to serve as an engine for its expansion and growth. Over the last 40 years, Micron’s high-performance memory and storage solutions have helped enable many broader technology advances in diverse end applications such as Personal Computing, Mobile Smartphones, Networking and Cloud Computing. In the future, Micron’s products will play an instrumental role in delivering storage and faster access to data that will continue to drive breakthroughs in new areas such as artificial intelligence, machine learning and autonomous driving.

“Our 40-year history is a great story of innovation and tenacity, and we are proud of our legacy,” Micron President and CEO Sanjay Mehrotra said. “Micron is scaling new heights and our technology is the foundation on which the AI revolution is being built. We look forward to the next decade with great optimism and excitement – and the confidence that the technology evolution is increasingly making Micron an indispensable player and key partner to the ecosystem and to our customers.”

Micron’s leadership and contributions extend to the communities in which it operates. The Micron Foundation, which the company established in 1999, has donated more than US$100 million in 17 countries. In the past two years alone, the Micron Foundation has contributed nearly $25 million globally. At the Boise celebration, Mehrotra announced the “40 For Good” program, awarding donations to four Boise-area charities. Last week at its inaugural Insight 2018 event, Micron announced a $1 million grant for universities and nonprofit organizations to conduct research on AI. The event featured keynotes and discussions with some of the industry’s most important thought leaders in the fields of AI, machine learning and data science.

At the Boise state Capitol celebration today, Idaho Gov. Butch Otter and Boise Mayor Dave Bieter joined the festivities, commending Micron on its success and commitment to local communities.

“Micron has created a vibrant legacy of leadership and innovation in their industry and an enviable record of civic involvement within our state,” Otter said. “The Micron Foundation has made tremendous investments in critical educational and community infrastructure. As one of Idaho’s largest employers, Micron has played a vital role in providing not just jobs, but meaningful careers. Through their 40 years, Micron has been a big part of Idaho’s success in diversifying our economy and expanding our economic base. With their continued wise and steady leadership, I have no doubt that Micron’s best years are yet to come.”

Business leaders around the world extended their congratulations to Micron on its 40th anniversary.

“In the course of the last 40 years when I was in the industry, many technology companies have come and gone,” NVIDIA Founder, President and CEO Jensen Huang said. “Yet the great ones, somehow, reinvent themselves, and surf the waves, and somehow are always ahead of it. Micron is one of those great companies.”

“As data continues to rise in importance, so does the need to securely and efficiently store and access it,” said Richard Yu, executive director and CEO of the Consumer Business Group for Huawei Technology Co. Ltd. “Micron has proven to be a reliable and innovative partner, helping Huawei address its data storage needs and supporting our growth as a networking and communications leader. We look forward to our future work with Micron.”

“Decades ago Micron allowed a small Dutch startup into its fab and has since been instrumental in ASML’s success. I have experienced firsthand the innovation and tenacity that have enabled Micron to survive and thrive when so many others did not,” ASML President and CTO Martin van den Brink said. “It has been a privilege to be part of Micron’s 40-year journey. Throughout the years, Micron has remained fully committed to our shared goal to successfully push leading-edge technology forward as a core differentiator. Congratulations to the whole Micron team on your 40th anniversary.”

“Micron is a longtime supplier for our business that has pivoted to provide memory solutions across Dell’s core technologies, from edge devices to data centers,” said Jeff Clarke, vice chairman, products and operations, Dell Technologies. “It is great to work with a company that not only delivers on our current needs, but listens, innovates and leads as new opportunities emerge to serve our customers.”