LSI Logic's origins and Wilf Corrigan's journey from Liverpool to founding the company.

• Wilf Corrigan, born to a dockworker in Liverpool, entered the semiconductor industry through Transistron and Motorola.
• He moved to Fairchild Semiconductor, becoming CEO and witnessing the exodus of key talent to Intel and AMD.
• After Fairchild's acquisition by Schlumberger, Corrigan left and contemplated starting his own company.

The early days of integrated circuits at Fairchild and the concept of custom chips.

• In the mid-1960s, customers requested customized integrated circuits from Fairchild, which was initially uneconomical.
• Gordon Moore postulated the increase in components on an IC, hinting at the need for specialized, low-volume chips.
• Fairchild's CAD group created the first EDA system, aiding the design of custom chips like the Micromosaic.

The struggles of Fairchild's custom chips team and changes in the semiconductor market.

• Fairchild's custom chips division faced financial difficulties and conservative management under 'Hogan's Heroes'.
• The introduction of microprocessors by Intel led to the closure of the custom chips team.
• The 1970s brought about changes: CAD software, CMOS technology, and a glut of semiconductor fabs.

The foundation of LSI Logic and its growth strategy.

• Corrigan reassembled the Fairchild team to co-found LSI Logic.
• The company raised $6 million in initial funding and chose a fabless model, creating masterslices for customization.
• LSI Logic's first customer was 3H, and they partnered with Toshiba for CMOS manufacturing.

LSI Logic's rapid growth, IPO, and international expansion.

• LSI Logic grew rapidly with major customers like DEC, and went public in 1983 on NASDAQ.
• The ASIC market grew to 10% of the semiconductor industry, with LSI holding significant market share.
• LSI expanded globally by creating subsidiaries in Japan and Europe, which operated almost like startups.

The decline of the ASIC industry and LSI Logic's challenges.

• The rise of VLSI and standard cell design, along with the emergence of FPGAs, eroded LSI's market.
• Silicon foundries like TSMC reduced the need for intermediary companies in custom chip production.
• LSI Logic faced financial difficulties and began a strategic shift to survive in the changing industry.

LSI Logic's transformation, layoffs, and eventual acquisition by Avago.

• LSI Logic laid off employees and exited Sematech as part of restructuring efforts.
• The company survived by transitioning to new business areas and focusing on data centers and mass storage.
• In 2013, LSI Logic was acquired by Avago for $6.6 billion, leveraging its strengths for further growth.

The lasting impact of LSI Logic on the semiconductor industry and its employees.

• Former LSI Logic employees reflect on their experiences and the company's impact.
• LSI Logic is largely forgotten but played a crucial role in the development of the fabless semiconductor model.
• Notably, Jensen Huang worked at LSI Logic before founding Nvidia, gaining valuable industry experience.