A View from C-Level

There are a number of word-associations one can make with T.J. Rodgers of Cypress Semiconductor: Outrageous. Outspoken. Outlandish. Nuns. Wine. Vicar of VMOS. Rodgers has been intense since his childhood in Wisconsin. Rodgers was a double major in physics and chemistry at Dartmouth. He attended Stanford University on a Hertz fellowship, earning a master's degree (1973) and a Ph.D. (1975) in electrical engineering. He worked at AMI and AMD before founding Cypress in 1982. He is one of the most outspoken executives in the Valley, but has a unique ability to talk not only at the 60,000-foot level but at the nano-level as well. He loves to run, although it's really more like a sprint. He decided to go out on just such a jaunt right before this interview, hence the sweaty look.

1. Introduction to the interview, Brian Fuller, EET editor in chief [ WMV | Real Video ]
2. Give us your take on where the industry is at this point in the cycle [ WMV | Real Video ]
3. As electronics becomes more consumer in application and cost structure, do you buy the theory that the compound annual growth rate of the IC business slows? [ WMV | Real Video ]
4. You mentioned handsets: how do you see the platform movement evolving as it applies to subsystem design? [ WMV | Real Video ]
5. Cypress has been known for its BiCMOS expertise over the years. Talk about the evolution of some of the more exotic processes we're seeing today. [ WMV | Real Video ]
6. Any interesting show-stoppers in there? [ WMV | Real Video ]
7. What kind of dielectrics are you looking at at 65nm? [ WMV | Real Video ]
8. Where is Cypress regarding 300mm wafer manufacturing? [ WMV | Real Video ]
9. Rodgers talks about the California business climate [ WMV | Real Video ]
10. Manufacturing jobs are leaving; design jobs are leaving. How long until management jobs leave Silicon Valley? [ WMV | Real Video ]
11. Talk about your beliefs on the stock-options controversy. [ WMV | Real Video ]
12. CEOs in general have been battered for everything from malfeasance to ethical lapses, except in semiconductors. Why? [ WMV | Real Video ]
13. If certain technologies are associated with certain decades, what will the '00s bring us? [ WMV | Real Video ]
14. What's the next killer app? [ WMV | Real Video ]
15. Conclusion to the interview[ WMV | Real Video ]

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